The Shapeshifter and the Thief
by LoneWolf KIA
Summary: Naruto fanfic using OCs. The story of two gifted children, one a shapeshifter, the other a thief, whose lives are inevitably twisted together. Victims of tradgedy, together they must defeat an evil spirit of their past. M for animalistic violence and gore
1. Chapter 1 Tracking

Tracking

_Note: Tsuki belongs to x- Hidan's Lover -x, Aya belongs to x- Pein and Itachi lover -x and Kazuki and any other character  
included that is not already a Naruto character belongs to me._

The wind whistled through the trees. The forest echoed to the sound of feet crunching the fallen autumn leaves and twigs. A group of around eight men advanced through the foliage. Each was dressed head to toe in dark red leather ninja uniforms. The symbols on their shinobi headbands were covered by a black band of cloth designed to hide their nationality. The men were making no effort at stealth, clearly certain that no one was following. Suddenly, one of them heard something and stopped. He looked over his shoulder at a high branch up in the forest canopy. He relaxed when he saw that it was just a large crow landing on the branch. The bird observed the column of men curiously as they trudged of into the distance. If only the man had taken a second look, he would have seen the shape of a man, crouching where previously there was simply an innocent crow. The man, around 18 years old, was dressed almost entirely in black, with a sleeveless leather jacket, strapped up with a series of belts running across the torso, and a pair of black leather trousers and boots. On his arms he wore a pair of black fingerless gloves, with a swathe of bandages running from his fingers to his elbows for further protection. His eyes, which seemed to change colour as you looked into them, narrowed above the dark scarf that hid the lower half of his face. Above the headband that labelled him as a ninja from Konoha, the Village Hidden in the Leaves, his spiky blond hair stuck out, a long section of fringe obscuring one of his unusual eyes. Under the scarf, he smiled.

"These guys aren't even trying to be stealthy," He commented, adjusting the strange metal contraption strapped to his back. "This should be easy."

In a flash, someone else was at his side.

"As long as they remain in the woods," said the female voice. "I'm not sure what will happen once they get into the open."

The boy glanced at her. The girl was 18, like him, but shorter than he was. She was also dressed mostly in black, with tight fitting trousers and tabi on the lower part of her body. Above the waist she wore a black corset top, with fishnet webbing covering the rest of the torso and running down to her wrists. A thin black ribbon circled her neck. As the man watched, she brushed a lock of her short silver hair away from her eyes, which were a strange purple colour. Unlike the male ninja, she wore no headband to identify her village.

The man looked back to the men moving away from them.

"You let me handle that, Tsuki-chan." He said. "We'll have no problem tracking them, no matter where they go."

Tsuki smiled at him. "OK, Kazuki-kun."

The two of them watched their quarry slowly fade into the foliage, waiting for the right moment. After a minute or two, Kazuki reached out an arm to Tsuki, and poked her in the upper arm.

Tsuki smiled, still watching the men. "Sexual harassment, Kazuki-kun…"

Kazuki raised an eyebrow. "Shall we?" He asked, indicating the path the men had taken.

Tsuki nodded, and, with a rustle of leaves, the two ninja were gone.


	2. Chapter 2 Taming the Bull

Taming the bull

_Six years ago_

Somebody screamed. In fact, a lot of people were screaming. The small hamlet was crowded with women and children at the time, obviously liable to cause a racket. Kaoru Takeda was cowering behind his meat stall. Shaking, he risked a glance over the wooden surface top. People were running in all directions, some with panicked expressions, some with confused expressions, but all looked absolutely terrified. The beast was stomping up and down the centre of the settlement, snorting and bellowing. Kaoru recognised it as the bull from the farm outside the hamlet. It must have escaped and was now causing chaos in the hamlet. Kaoru yelped and hid behind the stall as the bull almost spotted him. As the settlement's meat trader, Kaoru considered himself the most likely target for the bull's aggression, especially if it recognised one of the bleeding slabs of beef on the stall as one of its relations. Kaoru could hear the sound of wood being smashed to pieces as the bull tore through some of the other stalls. Kaoru almost laughed out loud when he heard Hachirou the fruit seller let out a pitiful moan as his stall was ripped apart, scattering apples and bananas across the hamlet. Suddenly, a large number of people let out loud gasps and began chattering furiously. Kaoru peered over his stall, a puzzled expression on his face. To his horror he saw a child, barely 12 years old, standing in the open around ten feet from the bull. The boy was dressed in a black T-shirt and trousers and had spiky blond hair sprouting from his head. Boy and bull were staring at each other intently. The bull snorted angrily and advanced on the defenceless child.

"Kid! Get out of the there!" Kaoru shouted, frantically waving his arms.

The bull turned its huge head towards the meat trader, who let out an un-manly scream and dived back down behind his stall. The bull turned its attention back towards the boy. He did not seem afraid in the least. Something in the child's blue eyes unnerved the bull. They did not seem completely… _human. _The bull snorted, deciding that if the boy was brave or stupid enough to stand in its way, then he would be trampled down regardless. The bull scraped its hooves across the dirt. With a frightening bellow, it sprang towards the child, to the screams of the villagers watching in horror. As the massive creature bore down on him, the boy suddenly smiled. To the puzzlement of the crowd, he let out a strange, almost animal-like noise. With an alarmed look on its face, the bull skidded to a halt just in front of the child. Kaoru watched in amazement. The bull seemed to have understood the boy. He stared at the boy.

"_Can that child talk to that bull?" _He wondered.

The bull eyed the boy suspiciously as he raised a hand the bull's face. He stroked the bull's cheek and leaned in close. Kaoru could see him whispering something into its ear. The meat trader gaped as the bull nodded in understanding, walking calmly away into the direction of its farm. The eyes of the villagers turned back to the boy standing in the centre of their hamlet.

* * *

The blond haired boy gazed at the faces staring at him. He saw in their looks the expressions of amazement, confusion and awe. But, the boy noted with a sigh, there was the inevitable stain of fear in their faces. There was always fear in the faces of people he met, wherever he went. He had never seen these people before, but he already knew him. They were normal people, living normal lives. When someone like him arrived into their lives, they may appreciate his help, but they would never be comfortable with his presence. They would never accept him. The boy had realised a long time ago that he would never fit in among humans. He stayed there, watching the faces for a moment or two. After that he concluded he needed to leave. He turned to leave the hamlet, turning his back on the people he had saved. On the outskirts of the village, he saw an old man leaning on a fence post. The boy passed him without a word, though he noted that the old man's expression was different than the others.

"Well done." The old man congratulated him, surprising the boy.

The boy glanced over his shoulder as he left, observing the old man's expression again. He realised that the tell-tale pang of fear and confusion was not present, only a mix of thankfulness, kindness, and pity.

"What's your name?" The old man asked, a genuine look of warmth on his face.

The boy hesitated. "Kazuki…" He mumbled. "Kazuki Hagane."

The old man smiled. "Thank you, Kazuki Hagane." He said. "I look forward to seeing you again."

The boy smiled awkwardly and nodded, knowing that the two would never meet again. He began to walk away.

"You have a gift, Kazuki-kun!" The old man called after him. "You are unique."

Kazuki stopped and glanced back.

"That does not make you an outcast." The old man continued. "Never forget that…"

Kazuki frowned. There was no trace of dishonesty in the old man's face, but the boy knew that what he said wasn't true. Without a word, Kazuki walked away, prepared to leave the hamlet, and the old man, behind forever.


	3. Chapter 3 Tracking

Tracking

_Present day_

A large spider scuttled across a tree trunk. The creature set its many eyes on a group of red clothed men stomping through the undergrowth. One of them glanced at the spider, a look of unease on his face. The man had been on edge all day. He kept turning around all the time; sure that somebody was watching them.

"Shirou!" Another man shouted, gently punching his arm. "Stop being so edgy, there's no one watching us."

Shirou took one last look at the spider, which was staring back at him, and then carried on walking. The spider silently watched him go.

* * *

Meanwhile, a sparrow-hawk on a nearby branch gazed down hungrily at the large, juicy looking spider clinging to the tree trunk. As the men left, the bird dived off the branch, aiming for the unsuspecting arachnid. The spider scuttled down towards the forest floor, into a small shrub. The plant was no defence against the sparrow-hawk however, which flew towards its prey, claws outstretched, and a triumphant squawk issuing from its beak. It was just a couple of feet from the shrub when something alarming happened. The sparrow-hawk could have sworn it was pursuing a spider, but instead of a small arachnid, a huge wild boar came charging out of the shrub, which seemed far too small to conceal such a large creature. The bird screeched and changed direction quickly, barely missing the beast's sharp horns. The terrified bird flew away as quickly as it could, no idea what had happened.

* * *

Tsuki sat cross legged on the branch, smiling, while gazing down at the spot where the odd scene had taken place. Kazuki seemed to appear out of nowhere.

"That was close." She smirked as the flushed ninja sat down next to her.

"You could have helped." Kazuki said.

Tsuki grinned. "I assumed you could handle it…"

Kazuki smiled back, poking her. "Obviously I could." He said. "I've dealt with worse."

Tsuki poked him back, using her sharp, bright green nails to her advantage. The two ninja stood up, the male rubbing his arm, and sprang off after the men.


	4. Chapter 4 Small Shadows

* * *

Small shadows

_Six years ago_

Tsuki had never considered herself to be a bad person. Sure, she stole from people all the time, but she had never actually killed anyone or anything like that. Besides, she was on her own, she _needed_ what she stole. She was sure nobody _really_ needed that extra food in the cupboards, or those nice gold necklaces hidden away in the drawers… Compared to some people, Tsuki was a saint…

* * *

The 12 year old girl crouched behind a bush, peering at the little wooden hut with her odd purple eyes. Tsuki had trouble fitting in with those eyes. Even though they were undeniably very pretty eyes, they tended to make people a bit uncomfortable when she looked at them. The girl smiled, brushing a strand of silver hair out of her face. That was another disadvantage where fitting in was concerned; children often thought she was an old lady from behind. That had always annoyed Tsuki, who was not the sort of person to resort to violence just because of one taunt. Tsuki blended in well in the blackness of the night, dressed as she was in the dark, slim fitting outfit of hers. She stared at the hut as the last light went out in the window. The place was in the middle of a wood, far from civilisation, so it was unlikely that there would be any witnesses she didn't know about. Even though she had not seen anybody in the house, she already knew by the throbbing feeling in her chest that it contained a family of four; two adults and two children. That was Tsuki's trademark gift: she could sense heartbeats. It wasn't like hearing it; it was more of just an unusual sensation in her body, like the vibrations of a loud amplifier at a concert. She could simply feel inside her.

* * *

Feeling the heartbeats settle into the more gentle rhythm of sleep, Tsuki crept out of cover and approached the hut. She leant against the door, no need to listen for stirring; she already knew no one was awake. Silently, Tsuki turned the handle. She was happy to find the door open, as many rural homes often are. Without a sound, she crept through the house, lifting as many things of value as she could, placing them carefully into a small cloth sack she was carrying. Her job done, Tsuki left the home, leaving no trace of her presence. Satisfied with her catch, the young thief set off in the direction of the nearest settlement, hoping to sell the stolen goods on to an unsuspecting shopkeeper.


	5. Chapter 5 Adoption

Adoption

_Six years ago_

Kazuki sat, shivering in the hollowed out tree trunk where he had made his temporary camp for the night. All he had for warmth was a small, scratchy woollen blanket, no help again the wind and rain that beat down on that cold winter night. Freezing and soaked, Kazuki couldn't help thinking back to the barely remembered life he used to have. He couldn't recall many details, but he remembered that he was never this cold, hungry or alone. Suddenly, he heard a twig snap. The boy immediately stopped shivering and crouched down, looking like a deer that had just detected a wolf. Kazuki had no weapons, but he knew that while he was in this forest, surrounded by animals, he would never be defenceless. The boy saw a shape moving slowly through the darkness, directly towards.

"Who's there?" Kazuki shouted.

The shape carried on moving towards him.

"I said who's there?" He shouted again, reaching out towards a small stone he could throw.

"Oh, sorry," the shape wheezed. "My hearing's not what it used to be…"

The shape shuffled into the moonlight. Kazuki's eyes widened as he recognised the old man he had talked to that afternoon.

"I thought I saw someone out here," He said, not shivering in the least, despite the freezing wind and rain. "It's awfully cold out here… Why don't you come back to my house? It's warm and dry and I have a spare bed there since my sister…" He trailed off.

Kazuki eyed him suspiciously. Kazuki could not remember the last time someone had offered him shelter, if it had _ever_ happened. He had not trusted himself to a human in many years. In his opinion, animals were far more reliable and trustworthy. Still… the idea of a warm bed for the night was appealing, and Kazuki could not help feeling sorry for the lonely old man. Kazuki chewed his cheek. He knew what it was like to be alone. What's more, Kazuki could not help but feel some connection to the old man, as if they were somehow… Kazuki didn't know, but for some reason, when he looked into the old man's face, he could see nothing but genuine kindness.

"My name is Daichi, by the way." The old man added. "It means: 'Great Wisdom,' ironically…" He laughed.

Daichi held out a hand to the shivering boy. Without hesitation, Kazuki took it.

* * *

They walked together through the forest. The two of them kept quiet, neither attempting to make conversation. Daichi had told Kazuki that he lived in a small hut in the woods, not far from here. They walked side by side, a few feet apart on the narrow dirt track. Although Kazuki felt he could trust the man, who seemed harmless enough, he had only just met him, therefore was still wary. Kazuki walked with his head turned towards the ground, shielding his eyes from the elements. As such, he did not notice the traveller until they had walked right into her. Their heads collided and both of them staggered back with cries of surprise and pain. Kazuki looked at the traveller. She was a girl, round about the same age as Kazuki. She had short, silver hair and was dressed all in black, like Kazuki. She was carrying a bulging cloth sack over her back. The girl rubbed her head, exposing large, purple eyes. Kazuki stared at her. She blinked and smiled at him, embarrassed.

"Sorry…" They both said at the same time.

The girl hurried on down the path. Kazuki stared after her.

"I like your eyes!" He called after, immediately wishing that his badly thought out comment got lost on the wind before she heard it.

The old man stared at her too. "Strange girl…" He said to himself. He looked up at the pouring rain. "Should have asked her if she wanted to come with us…"

* * *

Daichi's hut was actually larger than any home Kazuki had seen before. It was a single floor building, roughly thirty metres long and fifteen metres wide; bigger than Kazuki would have thought an old man would require. Daichi walked up to the wooden door and opened it.

"You didn't lock it?" Kazuki asked.

Daichi smiled. "I have other means of security."

Kazuki looked at him suspiciously as Daichi shuffled inside. The boy followed him in. The old man immediately asked him if he was hungry. Kazuki smirked; he couldn't remember a time when he wasn't.

* * *

The two of them sat around Daichi's dining table, in front of a wood fireplace. Kazuki had never had ramen, but was too busy wolfing it down to note the taste. Daichi stared at him in silence while slowly working his way through his bowl. Suddenly, he put down his chopsticks.

"No parents then?" He asked.

Kazuki stopped mid-bite. He shook his head and carried on eating, more slowly, while staring at the old man. Daichi was bald, but sprouted a short grey goatee from his chin.

"So you've been on your own?" He asked. "That must be hard."

Kazuki gazed at him in silence.

Daichi sighed. "I know what it's like to be alone…" He said, staring into the fire. "My sister left me ten years ago. I haven't seen her since." He looked back at Kazuki, who was staring at the old man with a sad look in his eyes. "In fact, I've had very little human contact whatsoever since she left. Sometimes I think there's nobody I can trust…"

Kazuki chewed his ramen thoughtfully.

Daichi glanced out of the window. "Kazuki-kun," He sighed. "Do you ever feel like you would more willingly trust an animal than a human?"

Kazuki froze; he thought _exactly_ that.

"Animals have no desire to betray or deceive." He continued. "Sometimes I think _I'm_ not human."

He stared into Kazuki's eyes; Kazuki stared back.

"Apparently you are already very friendly with animals of all kinds." He said, smiling knowingly. "I was very impressed with the way you tamed that bull. You acted bravely and heroically."

Kazuki coughed. "Thank you, Daichi-sempai…"

"Care to tell me how you did it?"

Kazuki opened his mouth, but hesitated to speak. "Er…" He mumbled.

"It's OK," Daichi said, "I won't tell anyone, you have my word." He smiled reassuringly.

Kazuki stared into his kindly face. "I… told it to calm down…" He told the old man.

"Just like that?"

Kazuki cleared his throat. "No…" He replied, scratching his knee nervously. "I used… um… bull language…"

Daichi laughed. "Bull language!?"

Kazuki sighed. "I knew you wouldn't believe me…"

Daichi wiped a tear from his eyes. "On the contrary, young Kazuki," he chuckled. "I _do_ believe you!"

Kazuki looked surprised. "You do?" he exclaimed. "Why?"

Daichi smiled. "Because I've done it myself."

The two of them stared at each other.

"Kazuki, listen to me." Daichi said seriously, leaning in close. "We are the same. We both have an affinity with the animals of this world. We both have this gift. I recognised your potential the moment I saw you."

"How?" asked Kazuki, bewildered.

"You have a look in your eyes." Replied Daichi. "I can see in you a great understanding of nature and its powers." He grabbed Kazuki's hand. "I can teach you these powers, if you will let me…"

Kazuki stared at the old man. He knew it was true about his ability to speak to animals; he had always had that ability and it was the one thing that had made him an outcast in the first place. But what the old man said about the powers of nature… was that also true? Kazuki drummed his fingers on the table. He had always felt like he was capable of something more, could this be it? He looked at Daichi's wrinkled hand grasping his. After a moments thought, he placed his other hand on top.

"Ok, I'll do it," He said into Daichi's beaming face, "Daichi-sensai…"


	6. Chapter 6 No Sale

No sale

_Six years ago_

"I like your eyes!"

The unfortunate statement drifted on the wind to Tsuki's ears. She laughed and glanced back over her shoulder at the blond haired boy, who was obviously cringing in realisation of how that must have sounded to her. The old man that was with him, she noticed, had been watching her in a strange way. Tsuki walked on, glad not to be part of whatever was going on there. She chuckled.

"_I like your eyes!?" _She laughed to herself. "What a douche-bag!"

* * *

Tsuki was surprised by what she found in the village she came to. She had hoped to find at least a general trader's stall to sell her stolen goods, but, although it was obvious that there _were_ stalls at one time, all that remained now was one meat stall and several piles of splintered wood.

"Can I help you, miss?" Said the meat trader.

Tsuki gazed around at the wreckage. "What happened?"

"One of the farmer's bulls got loose." He replied. "Tore up all the stalls apart from this one…" He patted his bloody stall in satisfaction. "Would have had mine too, if that kid hadn't shown up."

Tsuki raised an eyebrow. "What kid?" She inquired.

"Blonde boy, 'bout twelve years old came and made it go away!" He told her. "Like magic! Just whispered somethin' in its ear and it walked off!" He stuck out his hand. "I'm Kaoru, by the way."

Tsuki turned away his sweaty, bloodstained hand. "Hmmm…" she wondered, thinking back to the boy she had bumped into last night. "Could it be...?"

She shook herself. _"Who cares?" _She thought. _"I need to move on and find somewhere to sell this stuff!"_

And without a second thought, she went on her way.


	7. Chapter 7 Tracking

Tracking

_Present day_

Kazuki cradled his bleeding knee.

"Shit, that hurts…" He cursed.

"Language!" Chuckled Tsuki, leaning over him.

Kazuki looked at the bloody wooden stake swinging from an overhead branch by a rope. "Didn't expect that…" He mused.

Tsuki gently placed her hand on Kazuki's wound, making him wince. She told him not to be such a baby.

"Came out of nowhere," He said, gritting his teeth against the pain. "Surprisingly well hidden."

Tsuki removed her hand. The huge gash had disappeared.

"Thanks…" Mumbled Kazuki, embarrassed to have to be healed by Tsuki yet again.

"No problem!" She grinned. "So I guess they know we're following them now?"

Kazuki grunted, flexing his leg. "Maybe… we'll have to be extra careful from now on."

The male ninja disappeared. Something small and furry darted into the undergrowth in the direction of the men. Tsuki glanced at the slowly swinging trap which was dripping Kazuki's blood, before heading off as well.


	8. Chapter 8 Sensei

Sensei

_Six years ago_

Kazuki had the best night's sleep he had ever had. It was a joy to sleep in a real bed at last. Breakfast in the morning was a godsend too. Even though it was merely toast, he was still grateful. After devouring the toast, Kazuki wandered through into the lounge, where he found Daichi sitting on an armchair waiting for him.

"Good morning, Kazuki." He said.

"Good morning, Sensei." Kazuki replied, bowing.

Daichi nodded in acknowledgement. "Take a seat," he said.

Kazuki eagerly threw himself down onto one of the comfortable armchairs.

"Today, Kazuki-kun," said Daichi, "we begin your training."

Kazuki was almost bouncing with excitement.

"First, I need to explain why we are the same." Daichi told him. "You see, we are both descended from the same clan."

"You mean… we're related?" Asked Kazuki.

Daichi smiled. "We are _all_ related, Kazuki." He said. "In time, you will come to realise that…" He stirred the cup of tea in his hands. "All animals, even humans, are related. All connected. That is the key to our power."

Kazuki frowned. "So what is this power?"

Daichi raised an eyebrow. "You consider talking to animals not to be a power?"

"Well, yeah…" Kazuki mumbled. "But… is that all we do?"

Daichi sighed. "Your attitude is underwhelming, Kazuki, but no, there is more."

He leaned in closer. Kazuki leaned in as well.

"Talking to animals is one thing." He whispered. "The next step…" He took a sip of tea. "Is to become them…"

Kazuki gaped at him. "Are you serious?" He exclaimed.

He could see from the old man's face that he was.

Kazuki's face lit up. "Wow!" he cried. "I could really do that?"

Daichi nodded. "It's possible, assuming you _are_ a member of the clan."

Kazuki suddenly turned sceptical. "Wait…" He said. "How do I know you're not lying?"

Daichi grinned. "I'll show you." He said. "Close your eyes."

Still sceptical, Kazuki did as he was told.

"Now open them." He heard Daichi say.

He opened his eyes. And immediately rubbed them. In Daichi's chair sat a slightly greying badger, holding a cup of tea between its paws. Kazuki looked around for his master, then stared at the badger.

"Do you believe me now?" asked the badger, grinning smugly.

* * *

_Two weeks later_

Kazuki was getting fed up. For two weeks, he had been doing nothing else but studying books of animals. Daichi told him he needed to know every animal inside and out (literally) before he could transform. He had been OK with it at first, but at the time he had no idea how long he would have to spend reading these books. Kazuki was a fast reader, so was getting through each book fairly quickly, but Daichi just gave him more and more. It was getting to the stage where Kazuki could name every bone in a badger's body and tell you the position and average size. Just when Kazuki thought he would spend the rest of his life in his room reading about the anatomy of a field mouse, Daichi called him into the garden. Daichi's garden was located in a large courtyard in the centre of the building, enclosed by walls on all sides. In it was a small pond populated by coy fish. Daichi was sitting on the grass next to it, feeding them. Kazuki sheepishly approached him.

"It is time." Daichi said, not even looking at Kazuki.

Kazuki almost jumped for joy. "Really?" he gasped. "I get to turn into an animal?"

Daichi nodded. "Control yourself." He added, just as Kazuki was about to pick up and kiss a coy fish.

* * *

The lesson involved an hour of warm ups and breathing exercises, but Kazuki was too excited to care. After 15 minutes of meditating while doing handstands, Daichi suddenly opened his eyes.

"We are ready." He said, gracefully turning himself the right way up.

Kazuki was shocked awake and immediately lost his balance, collapsing in a heap.

"The animal transformation," Daichi explained as Kazuki picked himself up. "Is essentially a regular transformation jutsu that they teach in ninja academy, except far more powerful." He started to pace up and down. "A regular transformation jutsu simply changes your appearance." He looked at the wide-eyed Kazuki. "Whereas our animal transformation jutsu changes anatomy and personality."

"Like what?" asked Kazuki.

"Animals are creatures of instinct," explained the old man. "This instinct is stronger than that of humans, who focus more on conscious thought. As such, when we transform into an animal, we are subject to unfamiliar feelings." He plucked an apple from one of the many trees in his garden. "For example, if you transformed into a herbivore," he said, taking a bite, "You will have the craving to eat fruit and vegetables rather than meat." He threw the apple down. "The opposite is true for carnivores." He suddenly looked at Kazuki very sternly. "Be warned, this is one of the most dangerous problems of animal transformation jutsu. If you transform into a carnivore, you risk losing your control and attacking people you care about."

He turned away from Kazuki's shocked face.

"Have… you…?" Asked Kazuki hesitantly.

Daichi stared into space. "Yes…" He choked back a sob. "Remember: predators will not see friends and family in humans; they will only see prey."

Kazuki gulped. Daichi looked at him again, a faint smile on his lips.

"Let's get started then…"

* * *

Daichi showed Kazuki the proper technique for the jutsu, including stance and hand signs. The signs were difficult to remember, but Daichi told him that he would not have to use such complicated signs once he was more adept at transformation. Daichi showed him an example. Standing with legs apart, he began moving his hands slowly, so that Kazuki could see the signs he was making. Then, once the sequence was complete, he raised his arms and cried:

"Animal transformation jutsu! White Tiger!"

In a flash of red, the old man's body seemed to turn to rubber as he contorted into the shape of a huge cat. When the light died down, Kazuki was gazing in awe at a large, vicious looking yet slightly decrepit white tiger.

"Of course, I didn't need to say that," Said the tiger, slightly boastfully. "It's just makes it easier for a beginner."

There was another red flash as Daichi transformed back.

"OK," he said, hungrily eyeing up the fish, "Your turn. We'll start off with something roughly your size: a deer, maybe."

Kazuki eagerly got into the stance and gave the hand signs a practice run.

"Perfect!" said Daichi, trying to avoid staring at the coy in the pond.

Kazuki beamed and breathed in, ready to make his first attempt. He rattled through the hand signs and was sure he had got them all right.

Raising his eyes he shouted: "Animal transformation jutsu! Deer!"

Bugger all happened…

* * *

Kazuki looked at Daichi, distraught. Daichi smiled at him reassuringly.

"Don't worry," he said. "No one does it on the first try."

Frazzled, Kazuki tried again. "Animal transformation jutsu! Deer!"

Nothing.

Daichi coughed. "Actually, maybe you should say 'Red Deer' instead; it's more specific…"

Kazuki tried once more: "Animal transformation jutsu! _Red_ deer!"

This still didn't work. All through the day the two worked on it, but Kazuki never once managed to get it to work. They tried different stances, revising hand signs and changing the animal, but nothing made a difference. As the sun began to set, Daichi lost his patience.

"That's enough!" He snapped, after Kazuki failed for the hundredth time. "This isn't working!"

Kazuki was almost in tears.

"I'm sorry…" He said.

"Get some sleep." Daichi rasped, staring into his coy pond.

Kazuki left without another word, ashamed of himself.


	9. Chapter 9 I wish I was a Coy Fish

I wish I was a coy fish

_Six years ago_

As soon as Kazuki woke up he realised he wasn't in bed anymore, where he should have been. For one thing, he was standing up. He looked around, dazed. He saw metal bars in front of him and, reaching out around him, realised he was in a cage next to the pond in Daichi's garden. Kazuki rattled the bars.

"Hey! What's going on?!" he shouted. "Daichi-sensei! What's happening!?"

The old man walked out from behind one of the trees, twirling a silver key around his finger.

"Sensei!" cried Kazuki. "What am I doing in here?"

"Hopefully preparing to transform." He answered coldly. "You're going to need to…"

"W…Why?" Kazuki stuttered.

Daichi glanced at the coy pond. "That pond is a lot deeper than it looks, you know…"

Kazuki realised what he was planning. "WHAT?!" He screamed. "You're insane!"

Daichi glared at him. "Possibly, Kazuki-kun," he muttered, "But I can see the power, and the potential inside of you. I _know_ you can transform, but it looks like I need to unlock that power."

"But what if I can't?!" protested Kazuki.

Daichi smiled, moving behind the cage. "Then you're of no use to me."

With one kick, he sent the cage, and Kazuki, into the coy pond.

* * *

He was right; it was _a lot_ deeper than it looked. As soon as it went in, the water was already up to Kazuki's shoulders.

"It might be an idea to transform into something that can breathe water!" Called Daichi.

"I CAN'T!!!" screamed Kazuki, knowing it was true.

Daichi laughed. "Then drown!"

The water quickly rose to Kazuki's neck.

"If you want to shout the words," Daichi told him, leaning close to Kazuki's panicked face, "You'll have to do it before you go under…"

A few seconds later, Kazuki was completely submerged. Air bubbles rose to the surface as water seeped into his lungs. Holding his breath, he tried to kick the cage door, but this only tired him out. In desperation, he tried to transform into a fish, but without being able to speak and the panic of being trapped underwater preventing him from remembering the hand signs, it was hopeless. Daichi's coy circled the cage. Kazuki started to run out of air. He thought about how disappointing it was to die at the age of twelve and cursed Daichi to a horrible death. He started to think about his life. He couldn't even remember his parents. He had spent most of his life wandering the country, living on his own. And now the first human he ever actually trusted was about to kill him. He frowned, thinking about the silver haired girl he had met on the way here.

"_I wonder where she is now?" _He thought, as water began entering his mouth. _"I bet she's not in this much trouble." _

As he started to become light headed, he thoughts turned to how pretty the coy were. One of them was floating just outside the cage, staring at him. A stupid grin on his drowning face, he waved at it. Suddenly the coy swam through the bars of the cage. Kazuki watched it swim around his head and swim out of the cage again.

"_Cool!" _He thought. _"I wish _I_ was a coy fish…" _His eyes widened as he felt himself begin to die. _"Wait! I _need_ to be a coy fish!"_

That was what did it for him. As he began to fade away, Kazuki closed his eyes and concentrated.

"_Animal transformation jutsu! Coy fish!"_

* * *

The sensation was strange. It was like being stretched and folded like a bed sheet. It wasn't exactly painful, but it would have been very uncomfortable if Kazuki wasn't already drowning in a fish pond. He took a desperate breath, and instead of the expected rush of water, he got air. He tried to move his arms and legs, but he no longer had any. Kazuki's world brightened.

"_I'm a fish!" _He shouted in joy, even though any one else would have heard nothing. _"I'm a coy fish!"_

He could have sworn he heard one of the other coy call him a weirdo. However, Kazuki didn't care, he was now living a fish's life. It was probably one of the simplest lives in the animal kingdom. All Kazuki desired was to swim around that little pond for the rest of his life, occasionally going to the surface when bring fed. Kazuki was perfectly happy to remain as a fish, but then he saw Daichi's beaming face on the surface of the water. Giving a fishy grin, Kazuki the coy fish leapt out of the water at Daichi. In mid-air, I transformed back into a dripping, shivering human, coming to land just in front of him. Kazuki had expected a number of responses, all except the one Daichi did. He hugged Kazuki tightly, and began to cry.

"I'm sorry, Kazuki…" he sobbed into Kazuki's soaking shoulder. "I'm so sorry…"


	10. Chapter 10 Tracking

Tracking

_Present day_

Tsuki crouched on the branch, frowning in puzzlement at the fading column of men travelling through the forest.

"_They're definitely moving quicker now…" _She thought to herself.

As she stared, a small robin glided over, coming to land on her shoulder. Tsuki glanced at it.

"Looks like they know we're here." She said to the robin.

In a flash of blue light, the robin disappeared, replaced by Kazuki leaning on the girl's shoulder.

"I think they knew that a long time ago." He said.

Tsuki gave him a stern look. Kazuki hastily removed his arm from her shoulder. He coughed.

"It could be that we underestimated what we're up against." He said, standing up. "We need to be even more careful now…"

Tsuki thought for a moment, then poked him. Kazuki smiled but he was not in the mood for another poke war. Without a word, both ninja sprang into the air and vanished into the trees.

* * *

Tsuki's eyes widened in mid-air.

"Kazuki!" She shouted at the man in the air next to her. "On your left!"

In a flash, Kazuki transformed into a tiny chaffinch, just before a shuriken shot through the point where his head was a moment ago. The little bird veered off, putting as many trees between him and his attackers as he could. Meanwhile, Tsuki, using a tree as leverage, leapt down to the ground, getting out of her exposed position in the treetops. She landed next to Kazuki, now back in human form and the two of them stood back to back in the centre of a clearing. Kazuki glanced at Tsuki, not even having to ask; Tsuki already knew what he wanted to know.

"Three of them." She told him. "In the bushes, we're surrounded."

Kazuki smirked, drawing a pair of short, straight swords from his back. "That's OK; we're not going anywhere anyway…"

Three of the red clothed ninja emerged from the foliage, clutching long katanas. Tsuki raised an eyebrow, drawing her own weapon. Putting her hands on each side of her waist, she pulled out a glinting, razor sharp katana, attached to a long knife in her other hand by a thin chain. Kazuki twirled the swords in his hands as the men approached cautiously. He smiled and turned his head towards his partner.

"After you…" He offered Tsuki.

Tsuki nodded and, with a glint in her purple eyes, lunged at the nearest man.


	11. Chapter 11 Making Progress

Making progress

_Kazuki's journal_

_The two years following my first transformation were the best in my life up to that point. I never really forgave Daichi-sensei for what he did that day, but I'm glad he did. Transforming into a coy fish was only the beginning. That event turned around my abilities and we actually began making some progress. Daichi was amazed by how much my performance had changed during my brief period in the pond. After only a month, I had learned how to transform into almost a dozen animals. Sometimes I think he's almost jealous! For about six months I still needed the hand signs to make it work, but after that we discovered that I was able to transform without them. Daichi couldn't believe I was able to do that in such a short time. Now, two years on, he says I am almost ready for something that normally takes up to a decade to achieve. What it is I have no idea, but I haven't been able to sleep much since he told me; I'm far too excited. As long as it doesn't involve drowning in a fish pond, I'm fine!_

* * *

_Four years ago_

Kazuki walked out into the bright sunlight of Daichi's garden. He stretched his arms. The boy looked a lot different than he had done two years ago. For one thing, he looked a lot healthier due to the better diet he was now getting from Daichi. His arms were now no longer the scrawny twigs of the poor homeless child; they were now strengthened by long hours of practice and work. His raggedy black shirt and trousers had long been replaced by brand new clothes from Daichi's own making. He had been given a tight fitting, strapped leather waistcoat and leather trousers. A scarf was wrapped around his neck but Kazuki usually wore it over his nose and mouth when outside Daichi's home because he was uncomfortable with strangers being able to see his face. Kazuki had originally been given these clothes in various shades of green, similar to the patchy robe Daichi usually wore, but he had instantly asked if he had them in black. Surprisingly, he did, handing them over to the contented boy with a look that said: _"Emo…" _Kazuki had had a growth spurt during his time there as well, now measuring far taller than his master. However, when Kazuki had jokingly pointed out this fact, Daichi had transformed into a huge elephant and chased the terrified boy around the garden. Kazuki never mentioned his height again, but started reading as many books as he could about elephants.

* * *

One day, Kazuki was practicing his animal transformation jutsu beside the coy pond while Daichi was reading the book he had been reading since Kazuki had joined him two years ago. About three months earlier, Kazuki had managed to sneak a look at what he was reading. It turned out the book was 'Make-out Tactics.' Kazuki didn't sleep for three days afterwards. Kazuki was happily changing from one animal to the next. He got into the stance and, without a word or a hand sign, a bright blue light shone as Kazuki's form contorted. When the light faded, a small fox stood in his place. Kazuki had not yet got used to animal instinct quite yet. He no longer liked transforming into a cat because he kept licking himself in… places. Even after he had turned back into a human, he coughed up hairballs (which was awkward if it happened to occur during dinner). One night, after becoming a cat, Daichi awoke to find Kazuki with his arm in the coy pond, trying to catch and eat the fish. Daichi made a point of not letting Kazuki out for a few hours after assuming the fox form, in case he attacked some of the farmer's chickens. According to Daichi, Kazuki had above average chakra levels, meaning he could stay in animal form for longer than the average shape-shifter, but his levels were still only high enough to remain like that for around five minutes. Daichi reassured him that in a few years, Kazuki would be able to stay as an animal almost indefinitely. Kazuki liked the sound of that. He often thought about living his later years as a dog, lazing around on someone's front porch, barking at cats and sleeping all through the day. However, he wasn't ready for retirement just yet; he still had a lot to learn. Suddenly, Daichi snapped his book closed.

"It's time." He said bluntly.

The fox cocked its head to one side. "For what?" Asked Kazuki in a muffled fox voice.

"For the next step in your training." Daichi replied.

Kazuki let out an excited yelp and promptly transformed back into a human.

"What are we going to do?" He asked.

"We are going to go somewhere very special," Daichi said, smiling proudly at Kazuki. "And after that, you will be more powerful than ever."

Kazuki grinned, rubbing his stomach. "Got any chicken?"


	12. Chapter 12 Sugar Rush

Sugar rush

_Four years ago_

As far as Tsuki was concerned, she had just hit the jackpot. A sweet shop, unattended and poorly locked, just waiting for her to raid. It didn't matter that she was spotted during her exit; with a barrel full of sugar now inside her, nobody had a hope of catching her. Now, as Tsuki sat hugging her knees in a ditch, shivering with a silly grin on her face, she tried in vain to calm down. She knew she had to make as much progress towards her next destination before withdrawal kicked in, causing her to become depressed and tired, not to mention throw up everywhere. So, with difficulty, she got to her feet and staggered off down the road.

* * *

Tsuki had made a lot of progress with her skills over two years. After so much time practicing with sneaking into houses and such, she was now far more agile and stealthy than she had previously been (when she hadn't had sugar, of course). Her ability to sense heartbeats had improved, too. Now she could detect them almost a hundred feet away, and could even detect the tiny heartbeats of the small animals and insects around her. At first, this was uncomfortable and made it hard for her to sleep in the wilderness, but she had quickly got used to it and was now able to ignore them. She still had the same silver hair and purple eyes, and was dressed almost the same as she did two years ago. The only noticeable difference was an increase in her height and a tiny gleam of confidence in her eyes that wasn't in there before. She was still on her own, but that didn't bother Tsuki; she was used to it.

* * *

The sugar starting to wear off, Tsuki began to take more notice of her surroundings. She frowned, sure that she had been here before. She looked around at the trees and the dirt path she was standing on, and suddenly remembered.

"_Wow…" _She thought. _"I was here two years ago. Of course, it was night and it was raining, so maybe…"_

She remembered the boy who had bumped into that night.

"_Oh yeah! That boy who liked my eyes!" _She laughed inside her head but then paused. _"Aww… I called him a douche-bag afterwards!"_ She thought, feeling bad about being so unfair.

She glanced down the path that the boy and the old man had taken, wondering if they were still around after two years. Tsuki decided it was worth a look, after all, if they weren't home, she could always rob them…


	13. Chapter 13 Tracking

Tracking

_Present day_

There was an unpleasant squelching noise as Kazuki slid his sword out of the man's stomach. The fallen ninja gurgled as blood seeped out of his mouth and gaping stomach wound, before slumped back against a tree trunk, dead. Kazuki let out a relieved sigh as he looked across the blood splattered clearing to where Tsuki had just released one of the men from her chain noose, his lifeless body crashing to the ground. Bits of the third man lay all over the clearing. Kazuki shook his head; he couldn't even remember doing that to him. He ripped off a piece of one of the dead guy's jackets, using it to wipe his bloody swords. Tsuki walked up to him, flushed and panting. Kazuki smiled reassuringly at her, sheathing the now clean swords. The female ninja recoiled from his smile.

"Er… Kazuki-kun…" He murmured, indicating the area around her mouth, "You've got some…"

Kazuki frowned at checked his reflection in one of his sword blades.

"Ah…"

Kazuki's mouth and chin were covered in his enemy's blood. When he opened his mouth, he saw little chunks of flesh stuck between his teeth. He grumbled in annoyance, starting to lick the area clean. This was the down side to fighting in the form of a carnivorous animal: you tend to bite off a lot of stuff, which gets stuck in your teeth.

"_A few years ago, this would have made me sick…" _Thought Kazuki, lapping up the excess human blood around his mouth. He looked at Tsuki's paling face. _"Not sure she's used to it yet, though."_

Tsuki turned away, not really wanting to watch her friend licking up the blood of the man he'd just killed. She looked down at the body of the one she had strangled. She was perturbed by the ease at which the two of them could kill. She remembered a time when the mere thought of killing was abhorrent to her. She sighed at the throbbing pain in her chest.

"_I thought this was supposed to get easier?" _She thought. She looked at Kazuki, wiping the last of the gore from his face. _"Look's like it has for 'Zuki-kun…"_

Kazuki approached Tsuki, slightly embarrassed about what he had done, yet not really feeling guilty about it. He glanced at the bodies.

"_They tried to kill us…" _He thought, trying to reassure himself. _"They deserved it. I have no reason to feel bad about killing them."_

Kazuki and Tsuki stared sadly at each other.

"_We're not kids any more…" _They both thought, as they moved on, leaving the massacre behind.


	14. Chapter 14 Breaking and Entering

Breaking and entering

_Four years ago_

Tsuki peered around the tree she was hiding behind.

"_This is bigger than any house I've raided before…" _She thought, inspecting the front of the huge, one storey house she was planning to break into. She could feel the presence of two humans inside, one the slow, uneven heartbeat of a sleeping elderly person, but the other was beating surprisingly fast. Tsuki decided the person was probably having a particularly nasty bad dream. In any case, they were unlikely to cause her any trouble, what with her new abilities and experience. The girl slunk out over the open area in front of the house. She tried the large oak doors, grinning in satisfaction as it opened with no resistance.

"_This is too easy…" _Thought Tsuki, creeping through the home's dark corridors.

* * *

Kazuki couldn't sleep. His sensei had told him that he was to go through a special process that would not only boost his powers, but make him a full member of Daichi's clan. Excited as he was, it was the latter that had his heart racing so fast. For once in his life, he would be part of something. For once, he would have some semblance of a family. Kazuki had wanted to leave for the special location right away, but Daichi had refused, claiming that we required a decent night's sleep before we departed. Kazuki was not getting that sleep as he sat, fully clothed on the edge of his bed, listening to the sound of birds outside his window. Suddenly, he heard something else. A soft thump, barely audible, coming from down the hallway. Kazuki knew instantly that someone was coming down the hallway. He listened closely and clearly heard light footsteps directly outside his door…

* * *

Tsuki froze. Where had the heartbeat gone? She stood outside a small wooden door warily. She was certain she had sensed a rapid human heartbeat on the other side, but it had disappeared, leaving only the distant throbbing of the old man's heart and the various beats of the mice and insects running around. Cautiously, she opened the door and crept into the room. She couldn't see anybody in there, but sneaked up to the bed to check if anyone was still in there.

"_What are you doing here?" _Whispered a tiny, rasping voice.

Tsuki stifled a scream and leapt around to face the speaker. She looked around the room but could see nobody. Suddenly, in the darkness, see saw the shape of a large spider descend from a strand of web in front of the door. Tsuki stared at it.

"_Who are you?"_ The voice was definitely coming from the spider.

To Tsuki's alarm, there was a bright blue flash. She squinted into the light and saw the spider suddenly transform into a human. He reached a hand and flipped on the light switch. As Tsuki's eyes adjusted, she saw a boy, around the same age as her, blond haired, blue eyed and dressed all in black. And he was blocking her escape route. Then, both of them widened their eyes in surprise as they recognised each other.

Kazuki blinked at the silver haired girl. She blinked back with her sparkling purple eyes.

"_You?!" _They exclaimed simultaneously.

They both stared at each other, dumbfounded.

"Er… I'm Tsuki…" Said the girl meekly, holding out her hand.

Kazuki shook her hand, never once taking his eyes off hers. "I… I'm Kazuki."

Tsuki smiled at him. "Can I call you 'Zuki?" She asked innocently.

Kazuki blinked dumbly. "Sure…" He paused, recovering his composure. "Wait! What are you doing here?!"

Tsuki coughed sheepishly. "Erm… I was just…" He stuttered.

"Trying to rob us?" Kazuki ventured.

Tsuki coughed again. "Yes…" She looked Kazuki in the eyes. "Is that OK?..."

"Of course!" Kazuki blurted out before stopping and thinking. "What!? No!"

Tsuki nonchalantly shuffled towards the door. "Well, it was nice meeting you again 'Zuki…" She said. "I'll just be on my way…"

Before he could stop himself, Kazuki had stepped out of the way to let her pass. Immediately, Tsuki darted for the open doorway. In the nick of time, Kazuki realised what he had done and threw himself at the fleeing girl, tackling her and landing in a heap in the corridor outside.

"_It's those damn purple puppy-dog eyes…" _Thought Kazuki as he pinned her to the floorboards.

* * *

"_Ahh!_ Let me go!" cried the girl, trying to wriggle out of Kazuki's grasp.

Kazuki kept a tight hold of her, determined not to let her get away. She began flailing her legs and caught Kazuki's knee, causing him to wince and loosen his grip. Tsuki managed to get an arm free. Bright green fingernails glinting in the light of the doorway, she poked Kazuki in the shoulder. Kazuki looked at her in puzzlement, and then poked her back. Tsuki locked eyes with him and stopped struggling. Instead, she focused on repeatedly poking the boy who was holding her down, and he poked back. In a matter of seconds, a poke war of epic proportions began, causing both of them to start laughing, despite themselves. The poke war ended in a draw as Kazuki and Tsuki both gave up, rubbing their aching shoulders and laughing hysterically. Suddenly, Tsuki stopped laughing and her expression became fearful. She could sense another human heartbeat behind her. Kazuki had stopped laughing too and was now staring over her shoulder with a worried expression. Tsuki slowly turned around and saw the old man standing there, a cold, threatening look on his wrinkly face.

"Er… This is Daichi-sensei," mumbled Kazuki to Tsuki. "Sensei, this is-"

"I know who she is," snapped Daichi. "She is a thief, come to rob me." He pointed a finger at the blushing girl. "Many have tried to steal from my home, none have succeeded."

"But I haven't taken anything!" Protested Tsuki.

Daichi stared at her in silence, his expression unreadable. Suddenly, with a flash of red, Tsuki was staring into the gaping maw of a large angry lion. Tsuki shrieked in terror. Kazuki tried to shout something but it was lost in the lion's powerful roar. Tsuki was paralyzed with fear as Daichi raised a massive clawed paw, ready to strike her. She screamed as the claws began to descend.

* * *

Suddenly she heard Kazuki let out a strange noise behind. Just as the lion's claw was about to rip her apart, something green flew in front of her. Time seemed to slow and she realised it was a turtle, its shell turned towards the lion, its seemingly concerned expression fixed on Tsuki. The claws struck the tough shell of the turtle, deflecting the claw and flinging the bewildered creature straight into Tsuki. Just in time, she raised her arms and caught the turtle. She was knocked to the floor by the impact, and when she opened her eyes again, the turtle was gone and instead, she was hugging onto Kazuki. The two hastily separated, Kazuki rubbing his sore back. The lion gazed at the two winded children with a bemused expression. In a flash, it transformed back into the familiar form of Daichi-sensei. He glared at the girl.

"Get out." He ordered.

Tsuki speedily clambered to her feet and bowed to the old man.

"Thank you, Daichi-sempai." She said before scampering down the hallway as fast as she could.

As she ran out of the front door, she stole one last glance at Kazuki, who waved at her. The girl smiled, waving back. Then she was gone. Kazuki eyed Daichi apprehensively, expecting some kind of lecture or punishment. But Daichi just smiled weakly and walked back to his room without saying a word. Kazuki stayed in the hallway for a minute or two, watching the doorway where Tsuki had left. He hoped, for her sake, that she did not return.


	15. Chapter 15 The Smell of Death

The Smell of Death

_Four years ago_

Tsuki ran for her life through the woods, determined to get away from the crazy house. She couldn't quite explain what had happened, but she guessed that the boy and the old man used some kind of transformation jutsu, like the shinobi. However, it was like no jutsu she had seen before; they had not used hand signs or anything. The fact that the old man was so willing to kill her for breaking into his home frightened Tsuki. She thought back to the boy. Apart from pinning her to the ground, he had seemed nice, and she couldn't recall anyone else ever saving her life like that. In fact, she had never been in a life or death situation before, and was glad that someone was there to get her out of it when it happened. Tsuki remembered the furious look on the old man's face and hoped that Kazuki was not in too much trouble because of her.

* * *

After a few minutes Tsuki decided it was safe to slow down for a while. She squinted into the darkness, wishing she had a torch or something. She was painfully aware that she had no idea where she was going, so just contented herself to following the path and hoping it led her somewhere. Tsuki was unnerved by the lack of birdsong or other animal noises and kept imagining large, ferocious animals pouncing on her from behind. Suddenly Tsuki saw something in the middle of the path. As she got closer, she realised it was moving slightly. Anxious, the girl approached it. With a gasp, she saw it was a man lying on the ground, wriggling as if in pain. He saw he and reached out to her.

"Help me…" He rasped, trying to grasp her hand.

Hesitantly, Tsuki walked over to him. Now that she was close, she found that the man was dressed in the uniform of a Konoha instructor. The man coughed and Tsuki felt something wet splatter her cheek. Slightly disgusted, she wiped it off with the back of her hand. She looked at her hand. It was red with blood. Tsuki stared at the man with wide eyes as he rolled over, revealing a huge ragged gash running down his side. He was practically swimming in his own blood. Tsuki could feel his heartbeat getting weaker and weaker, and she could do nothing to help. The man gazed at her and held out his bloodstained hand. Tsuki held onto it tightly as the man's eyes began to close. All of a sudden, Tsuki felt his failing heartbeat stop.

* * *

It was a horrible feeling that made Tsuki cry out in pain. It was a terrible, empty sensation that almost caused her to be sick all over the corpse. For a minute or two, the frightened young girl sat next to the body, crying freely. The worst part was the fact that she couldn't do anything to save him. The feeling of helplessness was overwhelming for Tsuki. With one last sob, she let the man's hand fall to the ground. Without a second glance, Tsuki ran off into the woods, her sorrowful cries echoing through the night.


	16. Chapter 16 Tracking

Tracking

_Present day_

Kazuki couldn't get the smell of blood out of his nose. As he bounded through the forest in the form of a deer, the thought of human flesh digesting in his stomach became less appealing than it had been earlier. The deer glanced up at the trees, where Tsuki was bounding along, easily keeping pace with him.

"_I can't imagine what she thinks of me…" _Thought Kazuki. _"Wait, what do__** I**__ think of me?"_

Kazuki thought of all the things he'd done in his life. There were a lot of things he wasn't proud of, but he had never felt guilty about any of it.

"_I do these things for a reason," _He thought. _"I do it to prevent worse stuff from happening to innocent people."_

A voice in his head asked him whether he was happy with the way he was. He had to wonder for a minute.

"_I don't have a choice." _He concluded, peering up at the girl leaping from branch to branch. _"Someone has to do it."_

"_Would you rather Tsuki was the one who had to be like you?" _Asked the pedantic voice.

Kazuki turned his head away, unable to look at Tsuki any longer.

"_No," _He thought to the voice. "_I'm glad she isn't me…"_

The voice remained silent after that.


	17. Chapter 17 Flying high

Flying high

_Four years ago_

Kazuki and Daichi left the house the next morning. Daichi told him that they would have to walk all day but could get there much quicker if they flew. Kazuki was nervous and excited by this idea, as he had never actually been on a long distance flight as a bird before. Daichi knew that Kazuki's chakra would only be able to last a short while, but it would still save a lot of time. So, after walking down the path to an empty crossroads, the two of them transformed. A few seconds later, a large, elderly heron and a small hawk took to the skies. Kazuki loved to fly. Normally, he was terrified of heights but his instincts as a bird overruled his fear. Instead, he basked in the thrill of zooming over the tree tops, watching the tiny dots of people and animals which were unaware that he could see their every move. He was extremely disappointed when he felt his chakra supply begin to run low. He gave Daichi the heron a squawk, indicating that we should land. The large bird nodded and they both turned into a shallow dive down into the trees.

* * *

Daichi stretched his slightly aching arms.

"Not bad," he commented, shading his eyes against the sun. "I think we probably saved at least three hours walk, but we still have a long way to go."

He tapped Kazuki's arm.

"Come on, let's get moving."

Kazuki followed the old man through the woods. It was a long walk over difficult terrain and even Kazuki –who was used to cross country walking- was soon sweating.

"So what exactly is this 'special thing' I'm doing?" He asked to distract himself from his tiredness.

"It's a ritual," answered Daichi, not even out of breath. "It's designed to unlock your full power." He climbed over a fallen tree. "It also serves as an initiation rite into the clan."

"What's the name of this clan?" Inquired Kazuki.

"The Shiryuu clan." The old man replied.

Kazuki leapt over a shallow ditch. "So you're Daichi Shiryuu? I thought you said I was already part of the clan, but my last name's 'Hagane'."

Daichi glanced back at his pupil, smiling. "The Shiryuu is not like other clans." He told Kazuki. "We are not directly related, but we all share the same abilities. When we discover someone with those abilities, we invite them into the clan and, after the ritual; they take the name 'Shiryuu' as their own."

Kazuki looked slightly disappointed. "So you're saying we're not related?"

Daichi stopped suddenly, almost causing Kazuki to bump into him. He turned and faced Kazuki.

"Kazuki-kun," he said, "You have to get past the idea of 'family.' Family is just an invention of humans. In reality, every single creature in a species is family to one another. Every human belongs to the 'human clan', if you will. This is true of every other species of animal as well. Understand?"

Kazuki nodded.

"Good," said Daichi, grinning at Kazuki. "That is the basis of the ritual, as it happens. If you can grasp that idea, you are part of the way through it."

"Part of the way?" Kazuki asked as Daichi started walking again.

"Yes," Daichi sighed, "and I'm afraid that is the easiest part of it."

Kazuki raised an eyebrow.

"As well as a ritual," continued Daichi, "it is also a test of willpower." He adjusted the pack on his shoulder. "During the ritual, you will be exposed to the full, animalistic force of nature. To pass the test, you must surrender yourself to instinct." He looked at Kazuki. "And come out with your humanity intact."

Kazuki gulped. "How many fail?"

Daichi thought for a moment. "About a third…" He coughed.

Kazuki stopped in his tracks. "A third!?" He exclaimed.

Daichi nodded sadly. "Exposure to pure instinct is a dangerous process. It is all too easy to forget that you are still human. There are many who go insane and become ferocious creatures that are half human, half animal."

He noticed Kazuki gaping at him. Daichi smiled reassuringly. "But they are a weak minority." He said. "I know you are strong enough to pass."

The old man clapped Kazuki on the back and walked off. Kazuki followed reluctantly, wondering if his sensei really thought that way about him.


	18. Chapter 18 Aya

Aya

_Four years ago_

The sound of sobbing echoed through the forest. A young girl sat hugging her knees against a log lying on a mossy embankment.

"_I couldn't save that man." _Thought Tsuki, wiping her tears. _"I can't save anyone. I'm useless." _She put her head I her hands. _"What's the point of me being here?"_

"Watering the plants with those tears?" Suggested a girl's voice.

Tsuki jumped as a pair of red eyes appeared in front of her. They were nestled in the happily grinning face of a girl the same age as Tsuki. She had neck length, dark brown hair. The girl was also wearing tight fitting black trousers and a black top that was essentially just a strap covering her chest. On her feet she wore a pair of sharp looking black stilettos. Tsuki however, was more interested in the long, blue and black beaded necklace hanging around the girl's neck.

"No," said the girl slyly, "You can't steal it."

Tsuki coughed self-consciously. "I wouldn't think of it." He said quickly.

The girl smiled. "You just were…"

Tsuki stared at her. "How do you know?" She asked suspiciously.

The strange girl smiled knowingly at Tsuki, sitting down next to her, to the silver haired girl's alarm. "Because I can read minds."

Tsuki laughed, stealthily edging away from the weird eyed girl who was sitting _far_ too close to her.

"Oh really?" Both girls said at the same time.

Tsuki stared at her in surprise.

"I'm Aya, by the way." The girl said with a friendly smile. "Of course, I already know your name."

Tsuki was about to ask what she thought it was.

"You're Tsuki." Aya chirped before she could. "It means 'moon', according to you. Mine means colour!" She blinked her red eyes. "It fits!"

Despite being seriously disturbed by the girl, Tsuki couldn't help liking the girl's blatant insanity.

"Nice to meet you, Aya-chan!" She said with a smile.

Aya smiled back. "I know…"

* * *

"So you can sense people's heartbeats?" Exclaimed Aya. "That's so cool!"

The two girls had quickly become friends and were now walking together through the woods.

"I guess," sighed Tsuki, "but you're mind reading is way cooler!"

Aya grinned proudly. "Thanks, but that's not all I can do…"

Tsuki cocked her head to one side. "Really?"

"Yep!" said Aya. "Watch this."

The girl fixed her red eyes on a large stick twenty feet from her and, after a moment of concentration, the stick flew into her outstretched hand. Tsuki watched in awe. Aya turned to her modestly.

"I'm awesome, aren't I?" She said. "I can't remember the word for it though."

"Telikelisis." Tsuki answered.

"What!?" Exclaimed Aya, laughing at her new friend's pronunciation of 'telekinesis.' "Say 'inanimate'."

Tsuki frowned. "Inaminate?" He attempted and failed.

Aya giggled girlishly. "Not quite… Now say 'cinema'."

"Cimena?" Tsuki tried.

Aya tried to restrain her laughter. Tsuki raised an eyebrow, deciding that her new best friend was even more insane than she was.

"You know what I want right now?" She asked with a sly grin.

"Yep!" Replied Aya.

"COOOOOOOOOOOKIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEE DOOOOOOUUUGH!!!"

* * *

As it turned out, Aya was as much a slave to sugar as Tsuki was, carrying around several tubs of cookie dough with her at all times. As the two girls sat together devouring the sweet dessert, Tsuki forgot all about her depression. Aya was staring at her new friend intently.

"I like your eyes!" She said.

Tsuki laughed. "You're the second person to tell me that, Aya-chan!" She replied.

Aya took another spoonful of cookie dough. "I know."

Tsuki sighed. "Of course you do, seeing as you can read my mind and such…"

Tsuki happily munched on the cookie dough while thinking back to the incident at Daichi's house.

"Kazuki, huh?" Said Aya, reading Tsuki's mind again. "Not a bad name…" She chewed the cookie dough thoughtfully. "Hey!" She suddenly shouted. "That rhymes with yours!"

Tsuki wasn't really paying attention. "Mmm?" She mumbled through a mouthful of cookie dough.

Aya begin to sing: "Kazuki and Tsuki, sittin' in a-"

It was a good job that Aya could read minds, because if she couldn't, she never would have avoided the punch Tsuki threw to her face.

* * *

Violence was avoided and the two girls resumed eating their beloved cookie dough. The mood of the conversation had deteriorated rapidly.

"Do you remember your parents?" Asked Tsuki.

Aya coughed. "Kinda…"

"What happened to them?"

"They died…" Said Aya absent mindedly while tucking into yet more cookie dough.

Tsuki looked shocked. "Oh, I'm sorry…" She mumbled, depressed. "How did they die?"

Aya looked at her blankly, chewing her cookie dough. "I killed them."

Tsuki gaped. "What?!" She exclaimed. "Why did you do that?!"

Aya swallowed. "I didn't do it on purpose!" She protested with an inappropriate smile for the subject. "I accidently made the house collapse on top of them when I was ten!"

Aya laughed, happily spooning in more delicious dough. Tsuki had lost her appetite and pushed the cookie dough away. Aya eyed the tub greedily, reaching out a hand to grab it. Before she could, Tsuki lunged and snatched it out of her grasp; she hadn't lost that much of her appetite…


	19. Chapter 19 Tracking

Tracking

_Present day_

Kazuki crouched behind a juniper bush. The situation had taken an unfortunate turn. The men that he and Tsuki were tracking had left the woods and moved out into the open flood plains adjacent.

"_This is annoying," _Thought Kazuki, narrowing his eyes at his quarry, moving away at a rapid pace across the open ground. _"I'll have to take the form of some kind of bird and observe them from above. That's not a problem but…" _He glanced at the girl crouching next to him. _"I'll have to leave Tsuki behind…"_

He could see by Tsuki's sad face that she had worked it out too.

"I have to go on alone." Kazuki murmured.

Tsuki sighed. "Are you sure there's no other way?"

Kazuki shook his head. "The open ground means that you'll be spotted easily on foot. If I transform into bird form, I can still follow them fairly safely."

Tsuki looked at her feet, downhearted. Kazuki poked her, giving her a reassuring smile.

"Don't worry," He said. "I'll be fine."

Tsuki smiled weakly and gave him a gentle poke back.

"You wait 30 minutes and then come after me," Kazuki instructed her, "That should put you far enough back to stay out of their view, while still being near enough to help if something goes wrong."

Tsuki nodded. "Hopefully Aya will be close enough for her to read our minds by then," she said, "Then we should be able to get something coordinated together later on."

Kazuki smiled. "Bye, Tsuki-chan."

Tsuki smiled back. "See you later 'Zuki-kun…"

With a meek wave, Kazuki disappeared from Tsuki's view. The lone female ninja watched sadly as a small speck of an eagle rose steadily towards the heavens.


	20. Chapter 20 The Ritual

The Ritual

_Four years ago_

The sun was starting to set as Kazuki and Daichi neared the end of their journey. Kazuki was ready to collapse from exhaustion.

"_What's with this guy?" _Thought Kazuki as Daichi nimbly sprang over a tree stump. _"He's not even slightly out of breath!"_

The old man walked out into a patch of open ground, followed shortly by his staggering pupil.

"We're here." Daichi declared, raising his arms in a 'ta da!' fashion.

Kazuki looked around blankly. "This is it?" He panted.

Daichi smiled and clapped his hands. Suddenly, the ground shook as a ring of eight stone pillars rose from the ground on the edge of the clearing. With a second clap from Daichi, the earth in the centre of the clearing split open, revealing a high marble pedestal which rose through the crack. Kazuki stared at Daichi in confusion. The old man simply raised his eyebrows at him.

"Stand there." He instructed, indicating the pedestal in the centre.

Kazuki looked at the pedestal and the surrounding pillars. "Erm…" He mumbled hesitantly.

Daichi looked at him sternly. "Do you want to back out?" He asked mockingly.

Kazuki sighed, knowing that the old man had him. He reluctantly clambered onto the pedestal. As he stood there on the high pedestal, Kazuki felt extremely vulnerable. Daichi silently took his place between the two largest of the outside pillars. He took out a large cylindrical case from his bag. Opening it, he revealed a long scroll inscribed with strange looking symbols. Kazuki shuffled his feet nervously.

"If you are ready…" said Daichi, flexing his fingers over the scroll, "We shall begin the ritual."

* * *

Kazuki gulped and nodded. Daichi carefully unrolled the scroll, moving around the clearing until it formed a circle surrounding Kazuki. With a typical elderly moan of pain, Daichi sat cross legged beside the scroll, on the outside of the circle. He straightened his arms and took a deep breath. When he was ready, he closed his eyes and began making hand signs. The signs were so impossibly complicated and fast, Kazuki barely saw Daichi's hands at all; just a blur. The sequence of signs was extremely long as well. All of a sudden, the pillar on the right of Daichi lit up with ethereal green light. To Kazuki's alarm, the adjacent pillar on its right lit up a few seconds later. Kazuki glanced back at Daichi; he was still furiously making hand signs, eyes closed and making no other movements. Kazuki watched as, one by one, each of the eight pillars lit up with the strange green light. The circle complete, the symbols on the scroll lit up too and, before Kazuki's bewildered eyes, left the paper and formed a ring of glowing characters circling Kazuki. Without warning, the pedestal Kazuki was standing on lit up with the same light. The stone suddenly became very hot, but Kazuki was unable to move his feet to avoid them burning. Kazuki watched as the circle of floating symbols began to revolve around him, slowly at first, but then quicker and quicker until all he could see was a single band of green. Then, with a load roar, the circle suddenly tightened and zoomed into Kazuki. With the force of a charging elephant, the ring crushed him.

"_HOLY SHIT!"_

* * *

Kazuki had never felt so much pain. It felt like his insides were being forced up through his gullet via a giant rolling pin. The colours around him changed from green to blue, and all of a sudden the pain stopped. A great weightlessness descended around him as he opened his screwed up eyes. He had become a dolphin, swimming in the bluest sea he had ever seen. He saw shoals of rainbow fish scatter at his approaching, their multi-coloured scales casting rainbows through the water. His heart filling up with joy at the beauty of it all, Kazuki flicked his tail and shot up towards the surface. The dolphin burst out of the water into the bright sunlight, Kazuki's streamlined body seeming to sparkle with colour. Kazuki was happy as he had ever been. But the expected impact of dolphin and water returning to each other's company did not occur. Instead, the sensation of flying remained and Kazuki realised he was no longer a dolphin. He was now a majestic eagle soaring above the clouds. The thrill of it was exhilarating. The turned his head to either side, scanning the skies. He was the only creature in sight. Kazuki looked up at the sun and stars, awed by how close they seemed. It was like Kazuki could just fly straight to them, and actually, he considered doing just that. But instead, he tucked in his broad wings and plummeted down through the clouds. Kazuki was lost in the sensation of the air rushing past him and once he had cleared the clouds he could see the ground far below him. He marvelled in the fact that he could seemingly see across the entire world. As the came nearer to the ground, he could see individual cows grazing in the fields. One of them looked up at him and Kazuki saw the shine of its small eyes against the sun. Suddenly, Kazuki became aware of just how close to the ground he had got. He tried to pull up, but he was going far too fast. For the first time, the eagle felt fear. Kazuki screwed his eyes up as he hit the hard ground.

* * *

Kazuki opened his eyes and found he was still alive. He looked around him and saw a field full of fluffy white creatures. Kazuki realised he had become a sheep! Not the most exciting animal to be, but that was not its lure. The point was the rugged simplicity of life. Contented, Kazuki reached down and munched on some grass. The melancholy of sheep life quickly passed and Kazuki's vision suddenly narrowed. The fields of sheep disappeared and Kazuki found himself staring at a lone gazelle, grazing on an open savannah. Kazuki looked down at himself and saw a mass of spotted fur. Kazuki was now a cheetah! He turned his attention back to the unsuspecting gazelle and was puzzled to find drool dripping from his open jaws. A strange rumbling resonated through his feline belly and Kazuki realised he was starving. He narrowed his eyes at the helpless gazelle, instantly knowing what to do. He leapt at the animal. Kazuki was almost on it before it sensed him and his claws barely missed the gazelle's neck before it sprinted away. However, Kazuki was not going to give up and so he gave chase. The gazelle was running for its life and Kazuki could smell the sweet stench of terror on its breath. With a predatory grin, Kazuki knew he had the creature. Giving one huge leap, the cheetah got a hold of the gazelle's rear legs and knocked it to the ground. Before it could get back up again, Kazuki was on top of it, pinning it down. The doomed animal bleated in terror as Kazuki stared hungrily into its tiny black eyes. He licked his lips and sank his sharp teeth into the flailing creature's neck.

* * *

Daichi viewed the ritual with a sense of apprehension. He continued making hand signs at a blinding speed and by now his fingers had begun bleeding profusely. Daichi, however, gave no sign of discomfort. The glowing light had turned yellow, showing the old man that Kazuki was almost on the last step of the ritual. But he knew that the final stage was the one that proved the most dangerous to the participants. Daichi remembered how he had barely made it through with his sanity intact. But he could do nothing to help, so just continued to make hand signs and pray that he wouldn't lose another pupil…

* * *

Blood rushed down Kazuki's throat. He greedily gulped down the raw flesh of the gazelle's neck. The creature was still struggling under Kazuki's powerful weight. With one swift movement, he raked a claw through its jugular, spraying red blood everywhere. The gazelle shuddered one last time and fell still. The cheetah flicked its tail in satisfaction and resumed devouring the body. It had felt wrong when he had first bit into the neck, but he had quickly got over it as he allowed the thrill of the kill and the taste of the fresh meat to wash over him. Now that he was used to it, Kazuki was gorging happily. In fact, he couldn't seem to stop… The salty taste of the blood and the tingle of adrenaline filled up his senses and his heart began hammering in his chest. Still he carried on wolfing down the meat. Suddenly, as the overwhelming rush reached its absolute limit, everything turned red. A massive, primal roar exploded out of Kazuki, enveloping the entire savannah in a red haze. The gazelle corpse was incinerated in a huge wave of fire bursting out of the ground around Kazuki. Kazuki let out an animal scream as the flames enveloped him. He scratched at his face with his hands, but only succeeded in leaving deep, bloody scars down it. He looked down at his hands and saw sharp claws protruding from his fingers, now drenched in his own blood. The pain flooded his mind, preventing any logical response to the pain of the flames and gashes. Kazuki just kept on roaring and screaming. Suddenly, a smell wafted up to his nostrils. The smell of other creature's flesh. He charged blindly in the direction of the smell and blundered into a herd of startled deer. With a brutal roar, Kazuki grabbed hold of one of the terrified animals and ripped it apart with ease. He wasn't even bothered about food this time; his only wish was to kill, to repay his own pain with that of other creatures. The animals around him scattered, running around him in a blur of various shades of hide. It was not just deer this time, but other animals. Rabbits, cows, buffalo, Kazuki lashed out and slaughtered them all, neither knowing or caring why he was filled with so much rage. He casually continued ripping apart animals left and right until he saw a new creature he hadn't killed yet: a human. But Kazuki didn't care what it was; racial ties meant nothing to him now that he had become a beast, an avatar of pure animal instinct. He was far past returning to his humanity. Murder on his mind, he advanced on the defenceless human, who stared at Kazuki blindly. Suddenly, he felt a pressure on his left arm. He froze. Someone had _poked_ him. Furious at this insolent act, Kazuki whirled around, claws and fangs bared. He stopped and looked down at the seemingly tiny human standing in front of him. Dressed in black, with short silver hair and unusual purple eyes, the young girl waved at the huge monster. Kazuki sneered and raised his brutally deadly claws in anticipation of one more kill. The girl looked him in the eye and poked him again in the chest. Suddenly Kazuki felt a tear slide down his cheek. He glanced at his raised claws to find they had been replaced by the harmless digits of a human. He turned back to the girl, know at level. They smiled at each other.

"Thank you." Said Kazuki before turning towards the first human, who he now recognised as his master, Daichi.

He walked calmly towards the old man, who smiled and held out a gnarled hand. Kazuki took it, not as a murderous animal, but as a human.

* * *

Daichi didn't like the look of what was happening. Kazuki was foaming at the mouth and thrashing wildly in the grip of the chakra ring. There was very little time left and if Kazuki didn't regain his humanity before it finished, he would be lost forever. Suddenly, the old man ran out of hand signs to make. With a sound of a vacuum cleaner turning off, the glowing light dissipated. Kazuki fell to the ground in a heap. Daichi approached his still form cautiously. He eyed Kazuki suspiciously as the boy rose to his feet, eyes still closed.

"Kazuki?" The old man questioned anxiously. "Are you alright?"

The corners of Kazuki's mouth twisted into a smirk. His eyes slowly opened and locked onto Daichi's. Daichi gulped as he gazed into the boy's eyes. They danced with ethereal light and changed colour in a way that anyone looking into them would always be wondering whether they were imagining the changes. Daichi gaped at him.

"_It worked!" _Thought Daichi, staring at what he had created. _"But what exactly have I unleashed?..."_


	21. Chapter 21 The Best Medicine

* * *

The Best Medicine

_Four years ago_

"So what am I thinking now?" Asked Tsuki, jumping over a shallow stream.

Her mind reading friend smiled at her. "You want more cookie dough." She answered.

"Duh!" Laughed Tsuki. "What about now?"

"Muffins."

"And now?"

"Llama…"

"And now?"

"Er… cookie dough, muffins, llamas _and_ rice milk."

Tsuki nodded thoughtfully. She looked around at the bleak woods surrounding them.

"Where shall we go?" She asked.

Aya squinted through the trees. "That way!" She said, pointing to Tsuki's left.

Tsuki raised an eyebrow at her. "Why that way?"

Aya grinned. "Because I know what you _really_ want," she said, grabbing Tsuki by the hand and dragging her away.

* * *

Tsuki groaned.

"Aya-chan…" She protested. "We've been walking for _ages_!"

Aya continued to lead her friend through the woods. "Really?" She said. "I must still be high on cookie dough; I lost track of time. We're almost there anyway."

"Where is _'there'_ exactly?" Asked Tsuki, struggling to keep up.

Aya smiled at Tsuki over her shoulder. "It's what you've been wanting all along…" She told her.

Tsuki frowned. "Which is?"

Aya grinned slyly and turned away.

* * *

Aya dragged the silver haired girl over a grassy embankment. Tsuki was almost unconscious from exhaustion; probably the result of all the sugar finally wearing off.

"Tsuki-chan…" Aya whispered into her dozing friend's ear.

Tsuki didn't seem to hear her, so Aya slapped her across the face.

"Wake up, biatch!" She yelled as a startled Tsuki clutched her reddening cheek. "We're here!"

Tsuki blinked and peered over the embankment. She saw a small, green, wooden building with white cloth hanging over the large open doorway. She looked back quizzically at Aya.

"This is what I wanted?" She asked. "What is it?"

Aya grinned. "A brothel…"

"WHAT!?" Screeched Tsuki, grabbing Aya by the neck and throttling her.

Aya was laughing so hard she began to cry. "Kidding!" She sobbed as Tsuki choked the life out of her. "It's not a brothel!"

Tsuki removed her hands from Aya's neck, not in the least amused. "So what is it?"

"A hospital." Answered Aya.

Tsuki started to panic. "Am I sick?" She exclaimed, testing her pulse. "Am I dying? OH MY GOD I'VE GOT CANCER, HAVEN'T I??!!"

Aya giggled. "Chlamydia, actually…" She said. "You caught it from an old man while on a sugar blackout."

Tsuki screamed. "I'VE GOT CHLAMYDIA!!!" She began to cry uncontrollably.

Aya stared at her. "I was just joking, Tsuki-chan."

Tsuki sniffed. "So I haven't got Chlamydia?" She asked, wiping her purple eyes.

"No," replied Aya. "Well, not that I know of… I suppose if you had recently…"

She caught Tsuki's glare and stopped talking.

"Anyway!" She said, changing the subject. "I brought you here because there's someone here who uses healing jutsu."

Tsuki finally got it. "Oh!" She exclaimed, perking up. "You think they'll teach me?"

Aya shrugged. "Maybe… If you seduce them a little…"

Tsuki stared at her. "WHAT!?"

Aya giggled. "You really are gullible, Tsuki…"

Tsuki glared at her and the two friends gazed down at the wooden building.

"Heh," both of them sniggered. "Wooden…"

* * *

The hospital was not very busy when Tsuki and Aya walked in through the wide doorway. They were standing in a small room with white painted walls decorated with metal engravings of animals.

"Shiny!" cried Aya, running up to the decorations like a penguin.

There was a young lady reading a book at the reception desk. Tsuki and Aya walked up to her sheepishly. To Tsuki's shock, she realised the woman was reading 'Make-out Tactics' (which raised some awkward questions that would have to be addressed at a later stage). The lady glanced at the two of them and went back to reading. However, she then realised that there were children present and hastily threw the book under the desk.

"Er… can I help you?" She asked, coughing awkwardly.

Aya was too busy staring at all the shiny things hanging from the walls to answer, so Tsuki took over.

"We're looking for the… heal-y… jutsu-y… muffiny person." She said incoherently.

The woman stuck her head into a back room. "Yuina!" She called. "Visitors!"

Tsuki frowned. _"Yuina?" _She thought to herself. _"Bind vegetables?"_

Somebody shouted something back and the receptionist nodded.

"Just go on through," she told them.

Tsuki didn't react straight away (she was busy thinking about bondage). After a moment the glazed look in her purple eyes disappeared and she dragged Aya through to the back room, thanking the receptionist as she went. The woman made sure the two children had gone and pulled out her book again. Unbeknownst to her, Aya had crept up behind her and was reading over her shoulder. She fell off her seat as Aya suddenly screamed "YAOI!!!" and fled the room, flailing her arms like a lunatic.

* * *

Aya entered the room to find Tsuki cringing at the sight of a wounded man lying sprawled on a wooden operating table. His chest been cut open and the two girls could see his organs pulsing away. There were two women tending to him. One, a young girl about twelve years old, was holding a green cloth over his face, obviously providing anaesthetic. The other was an elderly woman who was picking shards of metal out of the man's ribcage with a pair of fine tweezers. Both of them were dressed in long leaf green kimonos. The old woman looked up at them as she worked.

"Can I help you?" She asked the girls.

Tsuki stared at the bleeding man. "Er… if you're busy, we'll come back later." She said, rubbing her feet together in a self-conscious manner.

"No, no…" Said the woman, picking the last of the metal pieces out. "We're almost done."

She put down the tweezers and placed her bloodstained hands over the wound. Her hands began to glow and Tsuki and Aya were amazed to see the wound instantly healing over. When the woman was finished, his chest looked good as new.

"Akiko," She said to her assistant. "That should do."

The girl removed the cloth from the man's face and placed it in a metal basin.

"Wow!" Exclaimed Aya, still staring at the man. "That was amazing!"

The woman smiled at her. "It's nothing special." She said modestly. "It's just a simple healing jutsu." She began washing her hands in a nearby sink. "I'm Yuina by the way."

"Do you think you could teach me to do that?" Asked Tsuki hopefully.

Yuina looked at her thoughtfully. "Is that why you came to see me?" She asked.

Tsuki nodded.

The old nurse folded her arms and looked at Tsuki critically. "Why do you want to learn healing jutsu?"

Tsuki stared at her feet. "I found this man in the forest…" She answered bashfully. "He was injured and I couldn't help him. He died…"

Yuina raised an eyebrow.

"I don't want anyone else to die just because I can't save them." Tsuki continued. "I want to help people."

Yuina smiled broadly. "That's the most noble and pure reason you could have given." She said, placing her hand on Tsuki's shoulder. "I will teach you."

Tsuki beamed happily. "Thank you, Yuina-sensei!" She cried, hugging the old woman.

Yuina pushed her away, muttering something about 'personal space.' She looked at Aya, who was swaying from side to side to the tune of her own private songs.

"What about you?" The old woman asked her. "What are you here for?"

Aya shrugged. "There's shiny stuff on the walls." She answered.

Yuina blinked and leaned over to Tsuki. "Don't let her near the surgical equipment…" She whispered in her ear.


	22. Chapter 22 Tracking

Tracking

_Present day_

Kazuki soared through the clouds. His sharp eagle eyes observed the distant red specks with growing apprehension.

"_Where the hell are they going?" _He kept asking himself.

He circled around the slowly moving men below, occasionally darting above the cloud line for a moment to avoid suspicion. He hadn't heard from Tsuki or Aya in a while and was starting to worry.

"_They'll be fine…" _He chided himself. _"Just worry about yourself."_

The eagle flew upwards through the clouds, emerging into the vast expanse of blue sky. He remembered with a pang the Shiryuu initiation ritual. He though about how ignorant he was of his true potential all those years ago. The eagle looked up into the heavens, remembering how he had marvelled at the beauty of it all during the ritual. However, he had no time for that now; he had work to do. Kazuki turned into a shallow dive through the white clouds, careful not to go as rapidly as he had in the ritual. As the eagle emerged, Kazuki was alarmed to find he had lost track of the men's position. He scanned the landscape desperately and finally spotted the scattering of red amid the green fields.

"_Damn!" _Thought Kazuki. _"They've picked up the pace!" _He gazed back towards the area of woodland. _"I hope the others notice as well, or they're going to be left behind."_

On that note, the majestic creature sped off in pursuit of the red clothed ninjas, not certain what he would find when he got there.


	23. Chapter 23 Passing on

Passing on

_Kazuki's journal_

_I keep having the dreams. Even two years after the ritual, I keep dreaming of myself as that horrible monster. I can't stop killing. I don't know what's hiding inside me, but I hope to God that it never gets out. Daichi was right about the ritual boosting my powers; I can't believe how much stronger I am now. Everything seems so easy, so simple. Daichi even sent me to study as a Konoha shinobi for a while. Ha, passed at the top of the class and the chunin exam was a piece of cake too. So know I'm officially a Konoha ninja, but apart from a snazzy new headband, the whole process had little meaning. Although I did meet this weird orange haired kid who kept saying he was going to be Hokage one day. I decided to humour him and wished him good luck. I seriously doubt that little idiot is going to achieve anything though._

_Anyway, over the two years I've been training after the ritual, I've pretty much perfected the animal transformation jutsu. I can transform into basically any animal I want with little effort and stay in form for hours and hours. I'd like to say it's my own skill, but really it's all from the ritual. I'm not sure exactly what happened that night, but my chakra levels seem almost unending. It's amazing how so much power can stay in one human being without it exploding out all the time. Although… sometimes I feel like I can't control what's inside, like anytime the beast is going rip itself out of my body and go on a rampage. But maybe I'm just being paranoid…_

_My sixteenth birthday has just gone and I received the first birthday present I'd ever got. I was surprised to find Daichi standing over me when I woke up, holding out a long rectangular parcel. I opened it eagerly and found it was just a lump of metal with a weird pattern of cracks running across it. He wouldn't tell me what it was but he said that if I ever got into trouble, it would help me out of it. No birthday cake, unfortunately._

* * *

_Two years ago_

The deer didn't suspect a thing. One second it was grazing peacefully in the woods, the next it was flailing on the ground, blood spurting from a huge gash in its neck. Pinning it down was a large, sleek leopard. The huge cat latched onto the creature's throat and tore a huge chunk of flesh out of it. The leopard gulped it down as the deer's life slowly flowed out onto the ground. Licking its lips in satisfaction, the leopard was engulfed in a veil of blue light. When it faded, a bleach blond youth stood over the body of the deer, wiping the errant specks of blood off his black leather vest. His mouth clear of gore, Kazuki pulled his black scarf over it, hiding the lower portion of his face. He felt slightly bad about leaving so much of the corpse, but he knew that other scavengers would soon come and take their fill. Anyway, he wasn't really that hungry…

Before the ritual, Kazuki would never have even considered hunting like this, but now it just seemed natural. Kazuki now understood the concept of the food chain, and he had the opportunity to always be at the top of it. Daichi was lounging in a deck chair on the porch when Kazuki returned. He glanced up from his book.

"That was quick." He noted, shielding his eyes from the sun.

"Easy hunting." Replied Kazuki bluntly.

He looked at Daichi's wrinkled face. The signs were subtle, but Kazuki had been noticing a decline in Daichi's fitness. Kazuki didn't know his age, but he guessed that his master did not have long to go. Daichi caught Kazuki's look and understood.

"I need to talk to you," He told Kazuki, "inside."

* * *

The two of them sat around Daichi's table, a hot cup of tea in front of each of them. Kazuki glanced briefly at his.

"_After four years he still forgets I hate tea…" _He thought with concern.

Daichi stirred his cup absent mindedly while sitting in silence. Eventually he side and pushed it away.

"Kazuki…" He muttered. "No doubt you have noticed that I am getting older."

Kazuki had to restrain himself from nodding.

"And I already know that I have little time left." He scratched the back of his hand. "After I am gone, there is something I need you to do."

Kazuki nodded. "Anything." He replied.

Daichi smiled appreciatively. "You need to leave this house and find a new master."

Kazuki frowned. "I don't need a new master." He protested. "I have nothing left to learn."

Daichi shook his head sadly. "Yes you do," the old man corrected him. "You may be an expert in the jutsu and your chakra levels are admittedly staggering… But can you control that power?" He raised an eyebrow at Kazuki.

Kazuki stared at him, well aware that he had doubts about that himself.

"That's why I'm sending you to my sister." Daichi continued.

Kazuki started. "Your sister?" He said, puzzled. "She's still alive?"

"Very much so," answered Daichi. "She runs a small hospital north of here. She can help you."

Kazuki thought for a moment. "Alright," he said. "I'll do it."

Daichi smiled broadly and hugged Kazuki tightly.

"Thank you, Kazuki-kun." He whispered. "I've always thought of you as my own son."

Kazuki saw that a tear was running down Daichi's cheek. Then Kazuki realised there was one running down his own.

* * *

Kazuki woke to a gloomy dawn. There was a faint drizzle pattering against the window panes. Kazuki padded down the hallway to the kitchen in the form of a cat, as he usually did when he didn't want to wake Daichi up. Kazuki was not much of a cook, as the blackened marks above the stove indicated, but toast was just about within his reach. After a few minutes, a 'ding' echoed out of the kitchen. A basset hound walked out into the living room, a slightly burnt piece of toast in its mouth, and leapt onto the sofa.

"_Daichi's sleeping in late." _Thought Kazuki as he chewed the toast with his dog's teeth.

Curious, the basset hound became a mouse, which scuttled down the corridor and slipped under Daichi's door. The windows were open and the curtains drawn. Kazuki found that the bed was neatly made and the room was meticulously cleaned and dusted. Turning back into a cat, Kazuki approached the bed cautiously. Seeing something small and white on the pillow, Kazuki became a human. He stared at the object. It was a dove, brilliantly white and lying motionless on the pillow next to a sealed envelope. With a growing sense of dread, Kazuki picked up and opened the envelope. Inside was a letter written with familiar handwriting.

* * *

_Kazuki-kun_

_You have surpassed me. I would never have imagined, all those years ago when I found you as a pathetic, homeless child, that you would grow into such a person. I can feel myself fading away even now, and this is why I am writing this letter. By the time you read this, it will be too late for me. I have lived a long life, which I now consider complete because I managed to help you find meaning in yours. Please stick to your word and find my sister. It is very important that you do. There are supplies for the journey in the closet. Leave right away and you should get there in two days on foot. Oh yes, I need you to refrain from travelling by air. I do not have time to explain why, but you'll have to trust me on this. Flying would be far too dangerous right now. Don't worry, I know you are strong enough to make it through this (don't forget your birthday present; it will help you when you have need of it)._

_Everything I said about me thinking of you as my son was true. I know you never had a real family, but I hope you found some comfort in me, as I did in you. You cannot imagine how proud I am. Or how sorry I am. I know what it is like to be in your position, and I don't just mean being on your own. Being a Shiryuu clan member is a terrible burden to bear. You must fight the beast inside of you, lest it break free and take control. You will face untold hardships in the future, Kazuki, but face them you must, if you are ever to gain complete control of yourself. Do not forget me, I will not forget you._

_Daichi_

* * *

Kazuki stared at the letter in his trembling hands. He turned to the dove lying on the pillow, choking back sobs.

"Daichi-sensei?" He whispered tearfully.

He gently picked up the dead bird and cradled it in his hands despairingly. Suddenly, two shimmering doves flew through the window. Kazuki watched in awe as the angelic creatures' grabbed hold of Daichi's dove body, plucking it from his hands. The creatures and Kazuki shared a moment of understanding before they spirited his master away into the now brightening sunlight. Kazuki gazed after them, painfully aware that, after four years, he was alone once again.


	24. Chapter 24 Graduation

Graduation

_Two years ago_

Birds fluttered by the doorway, chirping happily. A red eyed girl watched them from a hammock hanging between two trees.

"Aya-chan!" Another girl's voice called from inside the little wooden building. "We need your help!"

Aya let out a tired sigh and slid out of the hammock. She lazily crossed the path and went inside the hospital.

"Hi Shiori," she greeted the receptionist, who nodded and went back to her paperwork.

Aya pushed aside the red curtain hanging over the doorway into the operating room. An old woman and a teenage girl were tending to yet another wounded Konoha shinobi on the wooden operating table.

"Ah, there you are." Yuina said to Aya. "He has an arrow head lodged in his rib cage."

Aya nodded and pointed a hand at the man. He groaned as a small piece of metal rose out of his open wound and floated over to a basin of water. When the arrow head was out of his body, Tsuki placed her hands over the wound. The flesh and skin immediately grew back and the wound became completely healed. The silver haired apprentice healer beamed at Yuina, who smiled proudly back.

"You've learned so much in your two short years here," the old woman said as they began washing their hands. "I'm impressed."

Tsuki's eyes lit up with a look that said: _"I'm awesome!"_

"Thank you, Yuina-sensei." She purred with fake modesty.

Aya coughed. "Er… can I go now?" She asked.

Yuina ignored her and turned to Tsuki. "Can I talk to you out back?" She said.

Tsuki nodded and followed her through to her office as Akiko arrived to move the wounded ninja into the bedrooms.

"Could you help me clean up the blood?" The girl asked Aya, struggling to pick up the heavy man.

Aya looked at the pools of red liquid all over the room.

"Nah…" she replied, walking back to her comfy hammock.

* * *

Tsuki and Yuina stood in front of Yuina's desk.

"How many patients have you treated so far?" The old healer asked.

Tsuki shrugged. "Feels like hundreds."

Yuina nodded in agreement. "It is hard work," she said. "But you have taken to it easily and I have never seen such a capable student."

Tsuki blushed. "Thank you, sensei."

"Ah, yes, about that…" Yuina coughed. "You are now no longer to call me 'sensei,' Tsuki-chan."

Tsuki frowned. "You mean…" She stuttered.

Yuina nodded sadly. "Yes, you are no longer my student," she sighed, "I can no longer train you."

Tsuki stared at her, devastated.

Yuina suddenly smirked. "I cannot train you…" she whispered, "because you have nothing left to learn."

Tsuki blinked in surprise. "Huh?"

"Instead of being by student," Yuina continued, "you are now my partner and equal."

Reaching into a desk draw, she pulled out a long green kimono. Tsuki's eyes lit up.

"Is that...?" she murmured, reaching towards the kimono tentatively.

Yuina smiled in a motherly way. "Yes, Tsuki, it's yours."

Tsuki let out a happy squeal and immediately glomped her former teacher. Instead of pushing her away, as she usually did, the old woman laughed and hugged her back. Yuina was about to say: "go try it on," but Tsuki had already scampered away into her own room to put the green robes on.

Yuina smiled proudly as she listened to the frantic changing of clothes next door.

* * *

Aya yawned and opened her eyes. She blinked and rubbed them as a young woman walked out of the hospital wearing a brand new green kimono.

"Tsuki?" She said, surprised. "Wow! That's pretty!"

Tsuki looked down at the leaf green healer's robes. She had always wanted a kimono like this and already it was her favourite item of clothing.

"Thanks!" purred Tsuki.

"So you're a real healer now then?" Aya asked.

Tsuki nodded.

Aya scoffed. "About time! You've been waiting _ages_ for that kimono!"

Tsuki glared. "It's not just the kimono!" she scolded Aya, "It's about achieving the respect of my sensei and the others and proving to myself that I can do something worthwhile!" She looked down at the new kimono and coughed. "Although the kimono is good too…"

Aya gave her a friendly smile. "You deserve it, you're a _great_ healer."

Tsuki smiled bashfully. "You are too!" she protested, flattered.

Aya made a 'pffft' noise. "No I'm not," she said, "I just most stuff around, I'd be rubbish on my own. I'd probably kill more people than I'd save."

"Awww…" Tsuki replied, patting her friend on the head in a comforting yet patronising manner, and secretly agreeing with her.

"I heard that…" Aya warned her as she read Tsuki's mind.


	25. Chapter 25 Kaito and the oranges

Kaito and the oranges

Kazuki left quietly that day. Daichi had prepared everything Kazuki needed before he died. All Kazuki needed were his own personal items from his wardrobe. He decided to leave 'Make-out Tactics' where his master had left it… Following the instructions, Kazuki headed north on foot, wondering what exactly the danger of going by air was. His mysterious birthday present was strapped to his back, ready for emergency use. Kazuki walked in human form for about five minutes, then he decided to increase the pace. Changing into the form of a slim black horse, he galloped down the path at speed.

* * *

Late in the afternoon, Kazuki was forced to turn back into a human and, exhausted, his pace slowed to a crawl (not literally). As Kazuki crested a hill, he blinked in surprise at the site of a large field which seemed to be on fire. When he blinked and looked again, he saw that the field was full of bright orange fruit plants. He trotted down the hill to it curiously. Plucking one of the fruit, he observed that the plants all bore oranges. He peeled it carefully and took a bite. He immediately spat it out again.

"Ugh!" he cried, gagging. "It's so sour!"

Suddenly, a nasty comment about Kazuki's mother emanated from deep within the orange fields. Kazuki peered into the fields suspiciously and, turning into a bloodhound, went to investigate. The stench of the citrus fruit was strong, but for some reason, there was an overpowering smell of cheese and gaffa tape coming from somewhere ahead. The bloodhound emerged into a little clearing in the centre of the field to find himself next to a large scarecrow. It had a wide brimmed brown hat at an angle covering its face and wore a long brown leather trench coat. Puzzled, Kazuki sniffed around the scarecrow's legs. Looking under the trench coat, he saw a pair of sandals on the ground. As he peered upwards, he was surprised to find that there was nothing under the coat at all.

"What are you doing!?" cried a voice.

The dog backed away from the scarecrow, paws scrabbling frantically in the dirt. Kazuki looked up at the towering scarecrow and realised that it was actually a person.

"Looking up my coat!?" it said. "Are you some kind of pervert!?"

Kazuki frowned at the figure, whose face was obscured by the sun's glare.

"Er… I'm a dog." He said, stating the obvious.

He heard the strange person snigger. "Yeah," he said, "I've noticed."

Strangely intrigued at meeting a person who found talking dogs perfectly normal, Kazuki changed back into human form. Suddenly he jumped back in surprise as he was able to see the person clearly for the first time. The man stood at least a foot taller than Kazuki and sported a medium sized black beard. The black hair sticking out of the floppy brown hat could only be described as 'fwoofy,' and his eyes were bright green, but had strange blotches of red that circled the pupils. The most unusual thing about him however, was that apart from the beard, hair and eyes, he was completely invisible. He looked to Kazuki like a mass of black hair floating above a trench coat, with disturbing looking eyes hovering in between the thick hairs. As Kazuki stared, the strange man took of his hat in greeting, causing his hair to rapidly expand like dough.

"Hello," he said to the bewildered teenager, "I'm Kaito."

Kazuki didn't reply. He stared at the hat that Kaito had just removed. He couldn't see any hand holding it aloft by his side; it just hung magically in the air a couple of inches from the sleeve of his coat. Kaito coughed.

"I'm Kaito." He repeated, in case Kazuki hadn't heard him.

The invisible man held out a sleeve. Kazuki, still in shocked silence, stared at where a hand should have been, ready for him to shake.

"_This is the weirdest thing I've ever seen…" _He thought, looking from the sleeve, to Kaito's face and back again. He shrugged. _"Then again," _he reconsidered, _"ten seconds ago, I was a dog…"_

He reached out a suspicious hand and, after a moment or two of searching, his fingers locked onto another set. With an unusual feeling, Kazuki shook hands with what appeared to be air.

"I'm Kazuki." He said, gazing in wonderment at his hand, still shaking it slowly.

"Nice to meet you…" Replied Kaito, nonchalantly yet desperately trying to free his invisible hand from Kazuki's hysterical grip.

"You're invisible…" Noted Kazuki dumbly.

Kaito's bushy eyebrow floated slightly higher. "Yeah, I know."

He slipped his hand away from Kazuki. As he did, Kazuki noticed a shinobi headband wrapped around Kaito's upper arm, bearing a symbol he didn't recognise. It almost looked like an orange…

"Which village is that from?" He asked, pointing at the band.

Kaito glanced at the headband. "The Village Hidden in the Oranges." He answered proudly.

Kazuki frowned. "Where's that?"

Kaito smiled, revealing a set of white teeth that contrasted with his black beard. He raised his arms, indicating the forest of orange plants around them.

Kazuki coughed. "Er… not much of village." He said. "No offense…"

Kaito glared at him. "Why not?" He demanded crossly.

Kazuki glanced around him. "No buildings." He replied. "Can't have a village without buildings."

Kaito sighed in exasperation. "It's the Village _Hidden _the Oranges, right?" He asked rhetorically, "So it's obviously _very_ well hidden."

"Hmmm…" mumbled Kazuki, "so there _are_ buildings?"

Kaito coughed. "Er, no…" re replied, "that's what makes it so well hidden!"

Kazuki raised an eyebrow. "So how many people live in this village?"

"Just me…" answered Kaito.

"So you live on your own," Kazuki said slowly, "in a village with no buildings in the middle of an orange patch?"

Kaito nodded.

"Which means that you're essentially a hobo living in a field," deduced Kazuki.

The two men stared at each other awkwardly. After a moment, Kaito plucked an orange from a nearby plant. With a flick of his wrist, a shiny silver fork shot out of his sleeve into his waiting, invisible hand. He then proceeded to use the fork to peel the fruit, spooning the insides into his mouth.

"_Who eats an orange with a fork?" _wondered Kazuki, thinking about running away sometime soon. He glanced around at the thousands of brightly coloured fruit. _"Then again, I can't argue about oranges with someone who lives with them…"_

Kaito held out the half eaten fruit. "Want some?" He asked hopefully.

Kazuki sniffed at the manky looking orange. "No thanks," he said, pointing over his shoulder, "I have to go…"

Without another word, he transformed into a bee and buzzed off…

* * *

Kaito stared at the insect that was fleeing from him, munching on the orange.

"_Why do they always run from the oranges?"_


	26. Chapter 26 Trauma

Trauma

_Two years ago_

Blood pumped out of the open wound. Tsuki desperately clamped her hands over it and released her chakra in an attempt to close it as quickly as possible. The Konoha ninja was hauled off the table and another was placed onto it. Tsuki glanced back towards the door, where five more men were slumped against the wall or being supported by medical personnel. She had no time to even clean her bloodied hands; she had to close all the wounds before the men bled to death from their various wounds. Sweating profusely, Tsuki closed up the gaping cut on the man's abdomen. She dragged the prone ninja towards the beds as Yuina took over the healing of wounds. As she was healing one man's back wounds, another man waiting for treatment collapsed. He hit the wooden floor hard and lay still, his blood flowing out through several gashes on his shoulders and chest. Akiko rushed over and, checking his pulse, shook her head sadly at Yuina. The elderly healer nodded grimly and indicated for Akiko to take the body through a side door into the mortuary. The surviving ninjas stared at the body leaving blood trails as it was dragged along the floor, thankfully too dazed and agonized to feel too much grief for their comrade's death. Luckily there were no more fatalities that day.

* * *

Tsuki sat on the end of a ninja's bed, wiping her drenched forehead with a towel. Yuina came up and sat beside her.

"Why have we had so many lately?" Tsuki asked, looking sadly at the fitfully sleeping man in the bed behind her.

The man had suffered a grievous wound to the face, resulting in the loss of both eyes. Tsuki and Yuina had managed to heal the wound, but they could never have hoped to reconstruct his eyes. He would be blind for the rest of his life.

"I don't know…" sighed Yuina, "There's obviously some kind of conflict going on, but the shinobi never do discuss their activities openly."

Tsuki smiled weakly. "Then we'll just have to work harder." She said.

Yuina didn't return her smile, but squeezed Tsuki's shoulder with a frail looking hand. Suddenly the blinded ninja sat bolt upright, letting out a loud scream which caused the two healers to leap off the bed.

"Darkness!" he shrieked, "I can't see!"

Yuina grabbed the hysterical man firmly by the shoulders.

"It's OK!" he said, "You're in a hospital. You're safe…"

The man moaned. "Can't see…"

Yuina stroked his cheek gently. "Your eyes have been damaged." She sighed. "You won't be able to see again."

The ninja became very quiet.

"What's your name?" Asked Tsuki after a moment.

The blinded man turned his head towards the sound of her voice. "Makoto…" He answered, struggling to keep his voice even.

Yuina moved close to him. "Can you tell us what happened?" She asked.

Makoto shuddered and coughed. "We were ambushed…" he gasped. "They jumped out of the trees… flinging shuriken… we were exposed, in the open…" He gagged violently and spat blood onto the floor. "The leader… he… faced me one on one… told me… I was the last… human I'd ever see…" Makoto sobbed. "He was right…"

Yuina narrowed her eyes. "Who was he?"

Makoto swallowed. "He wore a mask… a mist village mask… but he told me his name… before he slashed my eyes…"

Yuina suddenly pinned the blinded man to the bed, a desperate and crazed look on her face.

"His name!" she cried, "What was his name!?"

"Yuina!" exclaimed Tsuki, shocked at her behaviour.

The began to breath very heavily. Yuina shook him.

"WHAT WAS HIS NAME!?" She screamed into his face.

Makoto let out an agonised breath. "Ryoichi…"

Yuina stared at him in disbelief as her stunned lips mouthed the name. She released Makoto, who fell back against the mattress and passed out.

"Yuina-sempai…" said Tsuki, staring concernedly at the wide eyed healer. "Who's Ryoichi?"

Yuina turned to her in despair, tears beginning to form in the corners of her eyes.

"He killed my children…"


	27. Chapter 27 The Howling

The Howling

_Two years ago_

Kazuki had run for the best part of the day and as the sun began to set he decided to make camp. Finding a sheltered spot not far from the road, he rolled out his sleeping bag onto the damp grass. He sat for a while inspecting his birthday present. He still hadn't figured out what it did. It just looked like a useless lump of metal covered in thin cracks. Kazuki bounced it up and down in his hands, noting how it seemed to weigh nothing at all. None the wiser, he grunted and placed the object on the ground next to him. Kazuki threw the cover of the sleeping bag over him and laid his weary head on the hard bag that acted as his pillow.

* * *

_Blood filled his open jaws. A red haze descended over his vision as his hapless victim squirmed in his iron grip. Kazuki gazed malevolently into his prey's terrified eyes and he bit down into soft, tasty flesh. Kazuki knew he was slaughtering a human but he didn't care; the bloodlust had already consumed him. Shaking the dying human in his jaws, Kazuki hurled the body ten feet across the inky blackness. Instantly he leapt at the face down human. Suddenly the prey turned his head and Kazuki instantly recognised the smiling, wrinkled face of master Daichi._

* * *

Kazuki woke with the inhuman howls still in his head. He was sweating and he realised that in his sleep he had torn his sleeping bag to pieces. With a feeling of dread, he found that the howls were no longer just in his head. The dark misty forest echoed with the almost melodic howling of wolves. As shaken as he was, Kazuki couldn't help being enchanted by it. Suddenly his heart began pounding away as something inside of him awoke. His chest like it was about to burst open as the wolves' howling reverberated through his body. In desperation, Kazuki clamped the remains of his sleeping bag to his ears in an effort to drown out the howls. But it was no use; his kin were calling him and he had no choice but to join them. The howls were joined by one more as the dark wolf that was Kazuki sped off into the forest.

* * *

Kazuki bounded through the mist, searching for his brothers. Their howls echoed around him and he could smell their welcoming scent on the air. Suddenly, he spied a shape moving in the mist ahead of him. Kazuki ran towards it, eager to join his fellow wolves in the hunt. He skidded to a halt as he recognised the distinctive human silhouette staggering blindly ahead. Kazuki stared at the disoriented person, smelling the fear from where he was crouched. It was likely a local farmer had got lost in the mist. He probably had family and friends anxiously awaiting his safe return back at his home. Kazuki, however, did not see that. He only saw prey.

* * *

The man turned at the sound of movement behind him. He cried in terror at the sight of a large dark wolf bearing down on him through the mist. He attempted to turn and run but stumbled over a protruding rock. The hesitation allowed Kazuki to barrel into the man's back, knocking him down. By the time the man had turned onto his back, Kazuki's snarling maw was only inches away from his face. Kazuki barked savagely, splattering the man with saliva. With a scream of pure terror from his victim, Kazuki clamped his teeth around the man's neck. As hot blood gushed down his throat, Kazuki finally became aware of what he was doing. He stared in horror into the eyes of the dying man he had fixed between his fangs. He watched as the eyes glazed over and the body became limp. Kazuki immediately released the body, leaping away from it as the blood seeped out onto the ground. Kazuki's mouth dripped with the man's gore and the smell of fear and blood clung to his nostrils. The stench of a kill soon brought more wolves to the scene, eager for a free meal. They were surprised to find a lone wolf, drenched in red, howling in anguish at an uncaring moon.


	28. Chapter 28 Tracking

Tracking

_Present day_

Tsuki watched the circling eagle with growing apprehension. She stood just below the crest of a grassy hill, out of the view of the band on red ninjas.

"_He's been following them for hours," _thought Tsuki, _"they're bound to have noticed him by now…"_

No sooner had this thought passed her mind than she felt a presence moving up behind her. So engrossed in her observations of Kazuki and the men he was following, the stranger had managed to get within a few metres before she felt the heartbeat. In a blink, Tsuki drew her dagger, the chain cracking off into the air by her side. She whirled around, lashing out with the blade, and found the dagger hovering against Aya's throat. The girl's deep red eyes showed no hint of fear or surprise.

"You took your time," said Tsuki, calmly putting weapon away.

"We were delayed," a deep voice butted in from behind Aya.

She moved away, revealing a man, invisible save for his hair, eyes, beard and the long brown trench coat he wore. Aya coughed.

"Sorry," she apologised, "hope we haven't missed the action."

Tsuki smiled forgivingly. "'Course not," she said, indicating the distant eagle over her shoulder, "'Zuki-kun's still tracking them."

Aya nodded. "I'll get a message to him."

The girl focused her gaze on the eagle slowly flapping against the strong, high altitude wind.

* * *

Kazuki fought against the wind that was attempting to knock him from the sky, his wings beginning to tire. Bleary eyed, he peered at the men below, noting with unease that the landscape was beginning to look familiar.

"_Jesus…" _he cursed in his head, _"I hope they're not going where I think they are…"_

"_Kazuki?" _a shrill, feminine voice suddenly pierced his thoughts, almost causing him to drop out of the sky in surprise.

"_Aya?" _he thought back, unable to disguise the irritation from her.

"_Duh…" _came the reply, _"how ya doin' up there?"_

The eagle rolled its beady eyes as a suitable word came to its mind.

"_Er… OK…" _Aya replied, _"we're ready back here if you need us."_

"_Kaito there too?"_

"_Yeah," _answered Aya, _"so what's the plan?"_

Kazuki didn't reply.

"_You'll have to tell me," _Aya told him sarcastically, _"remember, I still can't read _your_ mind unless you actually talk to me in your head."_

"_Just stay with us," _Kazuki finally answered, _"this may have just got complicated…"_

"_Huh? Why?"_

Kazuki hesitated and then told her his theory. He sensed Aya's unhappiness at the prospect.

"_Are you sure?" _she asked.

"_Luckily, no," _Kazuki replied, _"hopefully they've finally gone solo…"_

"_And what if they haven't?"_

Kazuki stared at the red stain on the landscape. _"Then we might be having a reunion with __**him**__…"_

Aya didn't send any messages for a while. _"OK," _she sent at last, _"I'll tell the others and we'll stick by you until you say."_

Kazuki felt Aya's presence slip away. Grimly, he descended for a better view.


	29. Chapter 29 Ghosts of the Past

* * *

Ghosts of the Past

_Yuina gasped and fell to her knees, her long black hair hanging down to the ground. Blood trickling down her forehead, she gazed up at the nightmarish figure standing over her. Swathed in blood red leather jacket and trousers, the assassin bore the distinctive Hidden Mist over his face, yet Yuina could feel his cold, lifeless eyes boring into her._

"_Ryoichi…" she wheezed, a trembling hand clutching the wound at her side, "Stop…"_

_The masked man stared at her pathetic form. Silently, a long, thin blade slipped out of his sleeve to be gripped lightly between his spidery, dark gloved fingers. He stepped forwards, his well kept, shadow black hair swishing across his masked forehead. Yuina waited until he was close before swiftly whipping out a shuriken from her leaf green kimono. There was a clang as her weapon collided with Ryoichi's glinting dagger. The assassin gave a contemptible sound as he disarmed the middle aged woman with a flick of his wrist. Before she could resist, a black leather boot slammed into her exposed chin, knocking her flying in a spray of blood. She landed on her back, the world spinning around her._

"_You're pathetic," rasped Ryoichi, advancing menacingly across the bloodied grass of the courtyard. _

_The wind chimes adorning the wooden walls of the woman's home remained deathly silent in the still, moonless night._

"_Can you see now why I left?" He asked, placing his foot heavily on Yuina's chest, pinning her down._

_The woman spat blood at his masked face. "You're the pathetic one…" She gasped as Ryoichi pressed down hard._

_He laughed coldly, bringing the blade near to Yuina's throbbing neck. "We'll see…" he hissed._

_Suddenly, a cry rang out. A shuriken hissed through the air towards the assassin with precise accuracy. Unfazed, he deflected it with a sharp hand movement, sending it thudding into a nearby wall. A second later, a shape darted from one of the doorways on the edge of the small courtyard, quickly followed by another. Ryoichi stared blankly at the sight of two children, a boy and a girl, standing defiantly before him, looks of furious determination on their faces. Yuina's eyes widened in horror._

"_Kaede! Isumi!" she yelled, desperately trying to free herself, "get out of here!"_

_The two children ignored her, instead drawing shuriken from their belts. The boy, Kaede, wore a set of loose blue overalls, patterned with black symbols. His messy ginger hair stuck out at strange angles. Isumi, the girl, wore a similar set of bright pink overalls, and her hair, as dark as Yuina's, hung down to her thighs in a long ponytail. Both had bright green eyes, identical to Yuina's own. Ryoichi blinked at them, turning to look at the woman pinned beneath his foot._

"_Your children?" he mused, an aura of malice emanating from the wicked sneer forming beneath his mask._

_Yuina stared back at him in despair. "No…" she pleaded, "please…"_

_Ryoichi glanced at the children, waiting for him to make a move. He turned back to Yuina and laughed horribly. He leaned in close to the sobbing woman._

"_Before I kill you…" he whispered sadistically, "I want you to suffer…"_

_Yuina's pleading cry was cut short as Ryoichi drove his boot hard into her chest, winding her and temporarily paralyzing her. A cringe-inducing slicing noise was heard as Ryoichi leapt at the children, brandishing the glinting dagger. The boy and girl leapt aside, clearly showing their experience of training to be ninja. However, Ryoichi was far more experienced and skilled. Kaede flicked his wrist, sending a shuriken flying straight to the spot where Ryoichi was a moment ago. He blinked as the weapon zoomed through thin air, the assassin nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, a searing pain flamed up across his spine, ripping his shirt and splattering the ground with blood. He was thrown to the floor by the force of the blow. He blinked confusedly up at the crimson spectre looming over him, a long barbed whip in one hand, and a long dagger in the other. Before he could react, the whip was around Kaede's neck, choking him and pricking him with its sharp barbs. Meanwhile, his sister Isumi blinked in surprise at the sight of her brother in the grasp of the whip. Whipping out another shuriken, she took aim at Ryoichi. A moment before she hurled it, her eyes met the dark slits of Ryoichi's mask. She could sense the penetrating cruelty and hate flowing from those dark chasms of evil and knew that she was facing someone who would gladly rip her apart for the fun of it. The overwhelming aura of dread washed over her, causing her to briefly lose her nerve. That second of hesitation was all Ryoichi needed. The girl let out a shrill scream as something sharp wrapped around her leg. Yuina, helpless on the ground, looked on in dismay as her daughter was pulled to the ground by a dark tendril bursting from the ground. Isumi looked down at her legs and saw a thick thorny vine binding them together tightly, the sharp thorns causing blood to trickle down her ankles. She squealed in fright as more erupted from the ground, wrapping around her body and fixing her arms to her sides. Soon she was completely bound in the mass of thorny vines. Ryoichi laughed as the two children screamed in pain and terror._

"_Stop!" gasped Yuina, blood trickling from the corners of her mouth._

_Ryoichi fixed his malicious gaze on her, pulling Kaede closer to the dagger in his other hand._

"_It occurred to me…" he said calmly, "That I could very easily kill you right here." He glanced at the writhing boy. "But I think it would be far more effective to let you live." The assassin brought the dagger to Kaede's throat. "I am seconds away from killing your children, Yuina. With one thrust of the dagger, and one squeeze from the vines, they will be dead."_

"_Mommy!" screamed Isumi as the vines began to tighten._

"_And you will have to live the rest of life knowing that you failed to save them," Ryoichi continued, drawing back the glinting dagger._

"_Mom!" choked Kaede, struggling in vain to break free._

"_No!" shrieked Yuina. She struggled to her feet and immediately collapsed again._

_Ryoichi sneered. "And knowing that one day," he hissed, "That I will be back for you…"_

_The knife descended. The vines tightened._

"_No!" screamed Yuina, reaching out a hand despairingly._

_The screams of terror were silenced. Something wet splattered Yuina's face._

_"NO!" she howled at the pitying sky, "NOOOOOO!!!"_

* * *

"Yuina!" Tsuki cried as the old woman fell from her bed, screaming.

Yuina trembled on the cold floorboards, her long fingernails gouging chunks out of them. As Tsuki bent down to help her up, Yuina suddenly embraced her tightly, tearing drenching Tsuki's shoulders. Surprised, Tsuki hugged back.

"Tsuki-chan…" Yuina whimpered, "It's been so long… and it still hurts so much…"

Tears formed at the corners of Tsuki's eyes. "It's OK, Yuina-sensei," she said, hiding a sob, "I'm here."

Yuina smiled weakly. "I know…" she whispered, "You are all I have left…" She looked Tsuki in the eye. "You and Akiko, you are my children now, and all I want is for you to be safe." Yuina stared at the wall. "But now he's back, and I know that before he kills me, he will make me suffer." She looked back at Tsuki. "He will kill you."

Tsuki blinked her tears away. "No he won't," she replied, "I won't let him hurt anyone."

Yuina smiled appreciatively. As Yuina's eyes closed, Tsuki caught a glimpse of something in them that told her that Yuina didn't believe her.


	30. Chapter 30 Ambush

* * *

Ambush

_Two years ago_

Kazuki retched, spitting out a wad of congealing blood, the majority of which was not his. No matter how much he tried, he knew he would never remove the taste of the man's blood from his lips. The sun was steadily rising far to the East, red as Kazuki's gore splattered jacket and trousers.

"_I can't control it…" _Kazuki moaned in his head, clamping his hands over his face. His fingernails cut into his skin, but he no longer cared. The pain felt good.

"_Can't risk another night," _he thought, gazing up at the sky, _"I need to find Daichi's sister before this happens again. I should be able to make it if I fly…"_

Kazuki remembered Daichi's warning about not flying, but under the circumstances, he thought it was worth the risk. After a moment of hesitation, he transformed into a small falcon and darted off into the dawn sky. Far behind him, a shadow clung to a lightning scarred pine. The sound of metal tapping wood could be heard. The shadow watched the disappearing bird with interest. Sunlight shone upon the tree, and the shadow was gone.

Kazuki soared above the trees as fast as he could, desperate to arrive before he had to face another night alone in the woods. Even as a falcon, the salty taste of blood clung, unwelcome, to his tongue. The thing that worried him most was that it tasted… _good…_ He shuddered, nearly offsetting his aerial balance.

"_I hope his sister can help me control it," _he thought, _"or I might kill again…"_ He abruptly scanned the tree line with a frown. _"Did I…"_

Suddenly something whizzed past his falcon body. With a cry, he darted sideways as another one shot right through where he just was. It was a shuriken, polished to a brilliant shine so as to dazzle Kazuki as it shot towards him. It was attached to a long thin cord which trailed back down into the dense forest. The cords were pulled back sharply and Kazuki was almost hit as the two shuriken fell back to earth.

"_Ah…" _thought Kazuki, _"this is why I'm not meant to fly."_

He blinked as half a dozen shining objects zoomed out of the trees, dazzling him. He opened his wings wide, causing the shuriken to fly past a few feet in front. As Kazuki sped on, he slashed some of the cords with his talons, causing the shurikens to fly off into the distance, and the cords to fall uselessly to the ground. He zoomed up into the cloud canopy, out of reach of the shurikens. Or so he thought. Suddenly a large number burst through the clouds, surrounding him in a web of hissing ropes and metal. Not a moment too soon, he transformed into a tiny sparrow, barely darting through a gap before the cords tightened and enveloped him. However, the air was too thin for the sparrow's tiny wings and Kazuki was soon plummeting through the clouds. He transformed back into a falcon as he passed through them, able to see nothing but white. He exploded out of the clouds to find a rapidly approaching shuriken staring him in the face. He desperately tried to brake, but he was travelling too fast. With a sickening thud, it pierced his wing in a shower of blood and feathers, the cord waving lazing behind it. Kazuki let out an agonised cry. His concentration broken by the sudden pain, he transformed back into a human. He seemed to hover in mid air before a sudden jerk on the cord sent him plummeting towards the trees. Kazuki flailed his legs and he frantically tried to wrench the shuriken from his bleeding forearm. He left a trail of red as he hurtled down at the beckoning forest. The blade came free with the sound of slicing beef in a burst of crimson liquid. Kazuki's vision darkened and he let the shuriken fall away as his body began to feel heavy and limp. Suddenly there was a loud crack as his back struck one of the higher branches. Kazuki cried out in pain as he bounced of the solid branches on the way to the ground. Just before he smashed into the ground, Kazuki instinctively reached out, blinded by dirt and blood. He grabbed onto a branch, nearly ripping his arm from the socket. The momentum caused him to swing around the branch and he soon found himself crouched on top of it. He stood shivering, the adrenaline barely keeping him upright. All of a sudden, the effects of the blood loss and fractured bones caught up with him. To the muffled sound of mocking shouts in the distance, Kazuki toppled off the branch. He landed ten feet down in a gorse bush, his leg painfully twisted beneath him.

* * *

"Still breathing?" Kazuki heard a voice ask.

His head throbbed painfully, but mercifully the rest of his body was numb, sparing him the agony. Every slight sound was like a hammer blow to his forehead.

"Can't imagine he would be," replied a deep voice, "Not after a fall like that."

Kazuki was lying face down in the prickly bush, the sounds swimming slowly around his beaten head. He tried to move his arms but it only caused his spine to burst into flames of pain.

"I wouldn't assume that," an even deeper voice called out, its natural volume loud enough to cause Kazuki's head to throb like it was caught in a vice, "These shinobi are tricky buggers." Kazuki felt heavy footsteps reverberating through the ground near him. "They can always surprise you."

A second set of light, cautious footsteps approached. Suddenly, someone kicked Kazuki hard in the side of his cracked ribs, causing the jagged bone to burrow deeper into his flesh. The feeling in his body suddenly returning with a vengeance, he let out an anguished cry.

"He's alive!" exclaimed a high pitched, nasally voice.

Clutching his chest, Kazuki heard a mocking laugh. "Told you," said the deepest voice. "Aoi!" he shouted, making the second man jump, "The boss doesn't want him alive…" Kazuki sensed an evil smirk on the man's face, "Finish him."

As Kazuki began to fade in and out of consciousness, he felt the lighter footsteps approach him, this time with purpose, until he sensed someone standing right over him. Kazuki smelt an earthy bark smell as the man leaned in close. Then Kazuki heard the sound of a weapon being drawn. His eyes opened wide as instinct kicked in. In a sudden surge of adrenaline, Kazuki flipped himself over, flicking his leg up into his assailant's side. Aoi was caught of guard and dropped the shuriken in his hand. His vision still, dark and blurred, Kazuki reached out blindly for the shuriken. Kazuki felt the metal fall into his palm and, twisting himself to face his opponent, lunged at him with the blade. In the moment before the shuriken slashed across Aoi's startled face, Kazuki saw a man dressed in red leather ninja wear, his black hair cut short and a black cloth covering his shinobi headband. His green eyes stared up Kazuki in fear, reflecting the oncoming blade. The moment passed and the unfortunate man's face erupted in a fountain of blood as the shuriken raked across his eyes. He screamed in agony and clawed in vain at the huge gash running across his face. Kazuki brought his foot up into Aoi's neck, ending his screams. Throwing the body aside, Kazuki saw that he was surrounded by half a dozen other red clad ninjas, all staring at him in surprise and anger, murderous looks emanating through their blood red balaclavas. The largest one, bearing a gold scythe symbol on each of his shoulders, marking him out as the leader, swore and pulled the largest katana Kazuki had ever seen from his back. The rest all followed suit, albeit with distinctly smaller katanas. Kazuki stood his ground, shuriken poised, legs quivering from the effort of staying on his feet. The leader swung his huge katana above his head, bringing it down with huge force towards Kazuki. Normally it would have been easy to avoid, but in his injured state Kazuki was far less agile, barely making it out of harm's way. The katana struck the ground, causing dirt and rock to burst outwards in a large shockwave. Kazuki leapt aside and landed on his feet, which gave way, causing him to fall to his knees. Instantly another man leapt at him, katana raised over his head. Eyes flashing, Kazuki transformed into a vicious, sharp clawed tiger. The ninja was startled and hesitated mid swing, allowing Kazuki to get a claw into the man's exposed chest. He gurgled as blood poured out of his mouth, clutching the gaping wound and collapsing. The five remaining ninja circled him cautiously. Kazuki stood in the centre, snarling and lashing out threatening at anyone who got too close. But the men knew that Kazuki couldn't last much longer and sure enough, Kazuki soon returned to human form, the effort of sustaining animal form while injured too much. He fell to his hands and knees, panting. Sneering in contempt, the leader advanced on him slowly, followed by the rest of his men. Kazuki gazed up at the giant man, the huge katana glinting menacingly. Suddenly he remembered Daichi's gift. Painfully taking the strange metal block from his back, he clutched it in his hands. The men hesitated, unsure of the object. Kazuki shook it desperately.

"Come on," he pleaded under his breath, "Do something."

One of the men laughed and walked calmly towards the helpless teenager. Kazuki glanced at him, then shook the block even harder.

"Work, damn you!" he hissed, "Daichi said you'd help when I needed you!" He looked at the man coming towards him, katana point aimed at his heart. "Well I fucking need you now!"

The man drew the blade back. "See ya', kid," he laughed.

Kazuki closed his eyes, holding the object up in despair as the katana stabbed down.

* * *

"Holy fu- ARRGH!!!"

Kazuki opened his eyes and was instantly blinded by searing white light. Hot liquid splashed his hands as he brought them over his eyes. The sound of metal slicing through flesh could be heard, followed by a thud as something heavy hit the ground. Kazuki cautiously peered up through the spots on his vision. The man that was attacking his lay on the ground, his life seeping out through a jagged cut across his throat. The other men stood around Kazuki in a circle, staring dumbly at something above his head. Kazuki craned his neck back to see something bright and metallic floating five feet above him. As his vision improved he saw it was an eagle, made entirely from metal, blood drenching its lethally sharp talons. With a cry, it flapped its wings and dived down at the men. They cried out in panic and threw themselves to the ground. The eagle's claws scraped across one of men's backs, causing him to scream and lunge out wildly with his sword. It struck the eagle in the wing, but simply bounced off, doing no damage whatsoever.

"Kill it!" shouted the leader, standing up and swinging his massive blade around, "On your feet!"

His men complied with some reluctance, lashing out with their katanas whenever the shining eagle got close enough. Kazuki dragged himself out of the way, slumping himself down against a tree trunk, clutching his hands onto his bloody wounds. One of the ninjas swung wildly at the eagle, overbalancing and stumbling. Instantly the eagle whipped around him and sank its claws into his back. Dropping his katana, the man scrabbled at his torn back, trying to dislodge the creature. The eagle stabbed its sharp beak into the base of his neck, causing blood to spurt out all over its metallic plumage. As the man collapsed with a groan, the leader swung his huge sword at the eagle on his back. He struck it with immense force, knocking it flying across the clearing into a tree. The eagle let out a shrill cry as one of its wings snapped in half. It dropped to the foot of the tree, flapping its crippled wings in vain. The leader swiftly charged at it, driving his sword into its chest. He blinked in surprise, finding that the eagle was now just an unassuming lump of metal. He turned to look at where Kazuki was lying, to find only empty air.

"Where did he go?" he asked the two remaining men.

They shrugged. "No idea, Gorou," one said, "I was watching you kick the crap out of that eagle."

Gorou glared at them in annoyance. He scanned the tree line. "You can't run, kid," he called, hefting his sword onto his broad shoulder, "There's nowhere you can go."

An angry roar echoed out of the forest. Suddenly something burst from the foliage. One of the man cried out in alarm as a black wolverine savaged his arm, sending his sword spinning into a tree trunk. He aimed a punch at the creature, but it became a small green snake, slithering up the sleeve of the man's jacket. He let out a terrified squeal as he tried to beat the snake out. Suddenly he stiffened and gurgled as spittle flowed from his mouth. He collapsed in a convulsing heap and the little emerald snake emerged from the neck of his jacket. Gorou and his last surviving soldier stared as Kazuki transformed back into a human. He stood panting over the body, blood dripping from his mouth from when he had bitten the man's neck and glared at the men with venomous eyes. Gorou glanced down at the boy's jackhammering chest and smiled.

"You're spent, aren't you?" he said to Kazuki, who stared back unresponsively, too tired to reply, "Out of fuel? I bet you can barely stand."

He nodded at his teammate and they both advanced towards him. Kazuki tried to move, but he knew that any further expenditure of energy would make him pass out.

"_Crap," _he thought, watching the glinting blades coming towards him, _"This really is it. No adrenaline left, very little chakra, and the eagle's not coming back." _He observed with little emotion as the katanas rose for the final time. _"Fuck…"_

Suddenly the smaller man froze. Gorou glanced back.

"What are you doing?" he asked, "We've got him!"

The man gazed at his leader with wide eyes. The eyes glazed over as he fell face down on the ground. Gorou stared at the metallic object sticking out of the man's back.

"Is that a… fork?"

* * *

The said utensil was quivering in the soft flesh of the man's back. Gorou looked at it closely and saw that it was coated in what looked like orange juice. He turned back to Kazuki to see that he had exactly the same bewildered expression on his face. Gorou suddenly heard the sound of eating behind him. He whirled around, sword at the ready.

"What the?..." he exclaimed, staring at the strange figure in front of him.

"Morning," said Kaito, raising his half eaten orange in greeting. He leaned around Gorou and smiled at Kazuki. "Sorry I'm late," he apologised, "I had a violin lesson."

Kazuki stared at him, his blood trickling down his already red stained trousers. "It's alright," he replied, "Don't worry about it…"

Gorou pointed his sword at Kaito, eyeing his invisible form warily. "Who the hell are you?"

Kaito took a bite out of his orange. "I am 'the hell' Kaito." He said, who are you?"

"Where's your fucking skin?!" Gorou exclaimed, ignoring the question.

Kaito frowned. "Underneath my normal skin." He glanced at Kazuki. "You want me to take care of him?" he asked.

"If you wouldn't mind," he replied, spitting out blood.

Gorou snarled at him. "I'd get out of my way if I were you." He threatened Kaito, waving his sword.

"If you were me," said Kaito, "You'd be awesome." He bit his orange again. "And if I were you, I'd be stupid and say dumb things like 'I'd get out of my way if I were you', which would be crap."

Gorou didn't wait for Kaito to insult him more. With a roar, he lunged at Kaito, who calmly carried on eating his orange as the huge man barrelled down on him. Gorou suddenly stopped and looked down at his leg. A quivering fork was imbedded in the muscled flesh. He looked up at Kaito, who hadn't moved an inch.

"You can walk away now," Kaito said, "Or you can keep on trying to kill me."

Gorou snarled and raised his katana.

"I thought so," sighed Kaito, raising his arm.

There was a flash of silver as another fork shot out of his sleeve. Gorou grunted as it thudded into his shoulder.

"Last chance," Kaito warned him, taking a few steps back.

Gorou staggered onwards. "Fuck you," he growled, bringing his sword up again.

He leapt into the air, his katana poised to strike and a throaty roar building up in his lungs. Kaito smiled. As the big man hung in the air for a moment, Kaito flung his arms wide, causing his trench coat to fly open, exposing the empty space within. Suddenly, the air was filling with clinking as a tidal wave of silver forks burst out of the coat and sleeves. Gorou yelled in pain and surprise and he was engulfed, the sea of forks carrying him across the clearing. He ended up impaled against a tree, a set of arms and legs barely poking out of a solid mass of forks.

* * *

Kazuki stared at the bloodied forest of metal. Kaito walked over to him, Kazuki's metal block in his hands.

"Spontaneous forkination," he said, handing it to him.

Kazuki nodded, his smile concealing the fact that he may well have been about to die. Kaito looked his bloodied form up and down.

"You OK?" he asked.

Kazuki swayed slightly. "Not really," he replied, trying not to throw up.

Kaito pulled a large bright orange from his Tardis-like coat. "Here," he said, "Eat this."

Kazuki sniffed the fruit, but could only smell his own irony, salty blood. "Er… I'm not hungry," he said, suspicious of the usual taste of Kaito's oranges. Kaito frowned and harshly crammed the orange down Kazuki's helpless throat. Despite the impossibly sour taste, it made him feel better.

"Not bad…" he lied, coughing.

Kaito grinned at him. "Wait…" he said.

Kazuki raised an eyebrow. He gasped as a wave of energy washed over him. Soon he was completely recharged, both with his own energy and his chakra.

"Wow!" he exclaimed, "That's amazing!"

Kaito shrugged. "Not really," he admitted, "You still need to get to a hospital before it wears off or you'll probably die."

Kazuki stared at him. "In a Shakespearean sense?" he asked, smiling weakly.

"Huh?"

"Never mind…" Kazuki said, "Thanks for the help."

Kaito grinned. "No problem, you alright to get yourself to a hospital?"

Kazuki nodded. "Yeah, there's one nearby," he said, "Actually, that's where I was trying to get to in the first place."

"Ok then," said Kaito, walking backwards into the trees, "I gotta go. I'll see you around."

"Yeah, maybe," replied Kazuki, waving as Kaito walked off.

Kazuki sniffed the air, aware of the sickening stench of blood and death.

"_I'll have to get used to this," _he thought, running off towards his destination.


	31. Chapter 31 Reunion

Reunion

_Two years ago_

Tsuki sat on the edge of her bed, rubbing her eyes. Yuina lay in the bed opposite, sleeping fitfully.

"_What are we going to do?" s_he asked herself, gazing at the old woman's silver hair, thinking how similar it looked to her own, _"Masses of injured Konoha shinobi, and now this! How could anyone want to kill Yuina?" _she thought about the scores of people she had seen Yuina save. _"This Ryoichi must be an absolute bastard…"_

She breathed out, releasing some pent up anger.

"_I need some air,"_ she thought, getting up and walking out.

* * *

Kazuki loped on in wolf form, already panting.

"_It's wearing off," _he thought, _"I hope this hospital is nearby."_

He trotted over a rise and saw a small wooden building. It had turned out to be a lot further to the hospital than he had first thought, having to run not stop all through the day and well into the night. Luckily Kaito's magic orange had kept him going and it looked like he would just about make it. He advanced cautiously down the ridge, cautiously sniffing for danger.

* * *

Tsuki wandered down the hallway, yawning. She was tired, but was afraid to sleep and surrender herself to her nightmares. She quietly opened Akiko's door, peering at the sleeping girl inside. Tsuki closed it again, grimacing.

"_Just one more person I have to save," _she thought, moving off down the hallway. She walked through the reception, noting the absence of 'Make-out Tactics' on the desk. She came up to the wooden double doors. She frowned, sensing a faint, irregular heartbeat outside. Taking a breath, she slid the doors open.

* * *

Kazuki transformed into a sleek, minky furred cat. He padded along the dirt path, listening intently for any sound. He gazed up at the firmly shut double doors looming over him. Wondering if this was really the right place, he glanced down either side of the path. As he was looking, he heard a sharp noise behind him as the doors slid open. He whirled around, blinded by the sudden bright light interrupting the darkness, to see a silhouette standing in the doorway. Then he heard the word no right-minded cat ever wants to hear:

"KITTY!!!"

Kazuki blinked. _"Oh crap…"_

* * *

"KITTY!!!" Tsuki screamed in delight, staring at the startled feline blinking up at her from the path. It tried to leap away, but Tsuki was too quick for it. Grabbing the hissing creature, she wrapped her arms around it and hugged it tightly, squealing like a child. The cat's eyes bulged outwards as the girl happily squeezed the life out of it.

"What the hell are you doing?!" it gasped.

Tsuki paused, wondering whether the possibility of a talking cat could make her stop hugging it. She looked down at it, but didn't quite let it go.

"Huh?"

"Could you let go of me?" asked the cat, gazing up at her with obviously forced kitten eyes.

Tsuki stared at it. "You're a cat…" she said.

The cat raised an eyebrow. "And you have a face…" it replied.

Tsuki blinked in surprise. "Cats don't talk," she said, secretly thinking how cool it would be if they could.

Tsuki yelped as she was engulfed in bright blue light. She opened her eyes again to find that she no longer had a cat in her eyes. Instead, she had her arms wrapped tightly around a tall, bleach blond sixteen year old boy who happened to be drenched in blood.

"Hi," whispered Kazuki, his bloodied face a couple of inches from Tsuki's startled purple eyes.

There were any number of suitable responses Tsuki could have taken, but she decided to forget all of them and instead kneed the injured man in the crotch and slapped him to the ground.

* * *

Kazuki awoke to the feeling of a cold ice pack being clamped to his forehead. He opened his eyes to see Tsuki and another girl leaning over him. The other girl was holding the pack on his head. He gazed up at her and she caught his look. She blushed and fumbled with the ice pack, causing it to slip over Kazuki's eyes.

"Akiko!" scolded Tsuki, moving the ice pack back onto his forehead, "Stop fooling around!"

"Sorry," Akiko mumbled, avoiding Kazuki's amused expression.

Yuina hurried through the door.

"Akiko told me you were hugging a boy," she said to Tsuki, "and then kneed him in the groin and knocked him down."

Before Tsuki could reply, Yuina saw Kazuki for the first time.

"Oh my God!" he gasped, staring at his bloodied and bruised body, "What did you do to him?"

"He was like that when I found him!" protested Tsuki.

Yuina peered under the sheet, which Kazuki found uncomfortable. She raised an eyebrow at Tsuki.

"OK," Tsuki admitted, "I did that…"

Akiko stifled a laugh. Kazuki almost joined in, but the throbbing crotch pain prevented him.

Tsuki glared at her. "I didn't mean…" she started, "I mean… I kneed him… Oh dear Jashin…" she sighed, giving up.

"Right…" Yuina continued. She turned to Kazuki. "I'm amazed you made it all the way here. You've lost a heck of lot of blood, but I think Tsuki can sort you out."

She nodded at Tsuki, who placed her hands over Kazuki's wounds. His eyes widened as the gashes and bruises healed over in front of him. He moaned as the broken bones inside him moved back into place and the tears they had left on his insides healed over, causing Akiko to giggle. Tsuki glared at her, self-consciously removing her hands from Kazuki's body.

"Thanks…" he said to Tsuki.

"You're welcome," she replied, beaming happily.

"Although…" he continued, surreptitiously looking down, "You missed a spot…"

Tsuki frowned. "I did? Where?"

Kazuki simply stared at her. She blinked, innocently confused. Suddenly she got it.

"HELL NO!!!" she cried, jumping back.

Kazuki frowned at her. "You did it," he argued, "You need to fix it!"

Akiko gave them a puzzled look. "What are you talking about?" he asked.

Yuina threw up her hands. "Oh I'll do it!" she exclaimed, exasperated

Kazuki started. "What? Wait, no!" he cried as Yuina walked over to him.

Without looking, Yuina thrust her hand under the sheets. Unfortunately, she did it a little too fast. Kazuki cried out in pain as her hand connected painfully.

"Don't be such a baby," she said as Tsuki and Akiko began laughing uncontrollably.

There was an uncomfortable moment of silence as Yuina healed Kazuki's final injury. After a few seconds she withdrew her hand.

"There you go," she said, wiping the hand on the front of Tsuki's kimono, "All done."

Tsuki jumped back and began wiping her kimono furiously, while Kazuki stared at them with a disturbed look on his face.

"Where's all my stuff?" he asked, trying to change the subject.

Akiko went to fetch a box containing Kazuki's newly washed clothes and his metal block. Yuina frowned and picked up the block. She looked at Kazuki.

"Where did you get this?" she asked, holding it under his nose.

"My master gave it to me," replied Kazuki.

Yuina stared at him. "Who is your master?"

Kazuki looked deep into her questioning eyes. "Daichi Shiryuu."

Yuina's eyes widened in surprise.

"Yuina Kichimarou?" asked Kazuki, his face turning serious and knowing.

Yuina nodded weakly.

"My name is Kazuki Shiryuu," he said, "I travelled for days and nearly died to get here." The two of them stared at each other. "Your brother is dead."


	32. Chapter 32 Premonition

Premonition

_Two years ago_

The sparkling stars gazed down from the blackened expanse of the skies. Ethereal pyres burning eternally in the lonely wastes of the void, they illuminated the shadowed, forested marsh with their transcendent glow. Kaito watched them enviously, standing knee deep in the clinging mud of the bog. He laid his invisible palm on the mossy bark of a broken tree. A beetle scuttled across, running away in surprise as it collided with the invisible barrier of Kaito's index finger. He listened to the symphony of crickets and frogs emanating from the maze of reeds surrounding him. Something was wrong. Frowning, Kaito scanned the trees, watching the wind skim through their spindly branches.

"Talk to me…" he whispered gently.

The wind stopped abruptly and the marsh seemed to faze Kaito out with silence. Kaito sniffed the moist air. Suddenly he stuffed his hand inside his coat and rummaged around frantically. He pulled out an orange, old and shrivelled beginning to turn an orangey grey colour.

"What did you say?" Kaito asked it.

The orange sat silently in Kaito's hands, the breeze scraping over its coarse skin.

Kaito sighed irritably. "Yes, I know _that_," he said, "But what _is_ it?"

He pressed his ear up against the fruit. His eyes widened in shock.

"Are you sure?" he asked the orange, which sat blatantly still.

Kaito cursed, carelessly tossing the surprised fruit into the reeds as he turned and ran back the way he had come. He dashed through the mud, practically skimming over the dark brown sludge, leaping over ditches, logs and patches of leech ridden reeds.

"_I guess we'll meet again sooner than we thought," _Kaito thought as he sprinted through the puzzled crowds of trees.


	33. Chapter 33 Tracking

Tracking

_Present day_

"_We've got a problem," _thought Kazuki as he glided just below the cloud line, his feathered back drenched in condensation, _"They've split up."_

Kazuki winced as Aya allowed Tsuki into their psychic conversation, the presence of another consciousness straining everybody's energy levels.

"_How many groups?" _she asked.

Kazuki peered down at the ant-like dots scuttling across the fields below.

"_Just two I think," _he replied, veering off after one of the groups, _"About a third of them are moving off towards a field of long grass to the right." _He adjusted his balance after some unexpected turbulence. _"They may be trying to ambush you guys."_

Tsuki paused. _"Do we go after them?"_

"_No, you'd better stay on the first group," _Kazuki advised, _"I'll keep an eye on the others and make sure they don't cause you any trouble."_

"_OK," _Tsuki replied, _"Stay in touch."_

Kazuki felt their obstructive psychic presences fade away and while this was a relief for his aching mind, he couldn't help but feel alone.

* * *

Tsuki jogged along the bottom of a sandy ditch, trying to keep as low as possible. She watched the eagle rise up into the clouds, only to come back down again further to her right above a large patch of long grass, which rustled as the red-clad men pushed their way through.

"It's definitely a trap," said Kaito, speeding up to catch up with Tsuki.

"Don't worry," she assured him, "Zuki-kun's got our back."

Kaito raised an eyebrow. "I wasn't talking about us…"

* * *

Kazuki flapped around the edges of the field. He clacked his beak in frustration, realising that he had lost the men. He flew lower, trying to catch the sign of red clothing.

"_I can't do this from the air," _he thought, concerned about the lack of movement below him.

Turning into a robin, he descended towards the outskirts of the long grass, hoping that his small form would help to keep him undetected. He became a weasel, darting through the labyrinth of grass, his keen nose sniffing out danger.

"_Zuki?"_ said Tsuki, the unexpected voice in his head making him jump, _"Where are you?"_

"_I'm in the grass," _he thought, annoyed, _"Tracking them on foot… Well, paw."_ He twitched his small black nose. _"Just keep on target, I'll be alright."_

Suddenly, something rustled in the grass in front of him. Kazuki tensed, creeping forward cautiously. A clump of grass shook in front of him, dislodging clouds of pollen and tiny aphids. Kazuki relaxed as a small furry head poked out of the grass.

"_Just a field mouse," _he thought, sighing.

The little creature eyed him curiously, wiggling its long whiskers at him. Kazuki smiled, until he saw the face grinning at him from behind the clump. Hostile green eyes stared at him from within a mask of brown mud and dirt camouflage clumsily daubed on the man's smug looking face. Crooked yellow teeth stuck out in a mocking smirk. Kazuki blinked in surprise as he rose from the ground, towering over the weasel. His entire body had been covered in the brown mud, concealing his distinctive red uniform. A hooded cloak of yellowy-green long grass was draped across him, giving him the ability to become practically invisible when hiding in the long grass. A concoction of earthy materials masked the man's scent, which in his case was probably substantial. Kazuki started as three more camouflaged men rose from the grass around him, all grinning in triumph. Kazuki stood there dumbly, amazed that all these men could have been so close without him noticing. Without warning, the first man whipped out a hand, tossing a net over Kazuki's stunned form. Caught, Kazuki struggled to free himself. He tried to gnaw the net with his sharp weasel fangs, but found the net was made out of some kind of fine, flexible metal and was too tough to break. The holes in the net were also far too small for even the tiniest animal. Another man stood over him, about to reach a padded gloved hand down and pick up the writhing bundle of fur and net. Grunting with the strain, the weasel rapidly expanded, becoming a raging, small elephant. The man was knocked backwards, Kazuki's trunk driving the air from his lungs. The metal did not break, but stretched massively and the fine wire would have cut deep into his flesh, if not for his nigh impenetrable elephant skin. The other three men leapt at him, brandishing long knives. Kazuki swung his head around, catching one with his trunk and stabbing the other in the shoulder with a tusk. Both men were thrown to the ground and lay there groaning. The last man, however, darted around the flailing trunk and jumped on Kazuki's back. Kazuki reared back, still enveloped by the net, as the man tried to force his knife through the elephant's thick hide. Kazuki flicked his trunk over his head, glancing the man's head and knocking him off. He lay stunned on the ground as Kazuki stamped his feet angrily. Kazuki raised a massive foot, intending to crush the prone enemy. The man cried out as Kazuki's foot descended, swinging wildly with the knife. Luckily for him, the blade found an area of thinner skin between the toes, just nicking the flesh and causing a shallow cut. Kazuki bellowed in pain, the seemingly insignificant wound hurting far more than it should have. He staggered back, his head swimming as he heard the sound of more men rustling through the grass towards him. Panicking, he transformed into a sparrow, slipping through the widened gaps in the net as it fell to the ground around him. Dodging the clumsy swipes from the man, he blasted out of the grass. Turning back into an eagle, he prepared to soar up to safety in the clouds above. He tried to flap his wings, but found he did not have the energy. Gazing confusedly down at the throbbing cut on his foot, he saw green liquid oozing from the gash.

"_Oh shit!" _he thought as his vision blurred, _"Poison!"_

He hung in the air for a moment, the strong wind keeping him airborne, but eventually gravity took control and he fell back down into the long grass among the waiting men. As he hit the ground, a multitude of voices called his name, the echoes reverberating through his head. Paralyzed and unable to sustain animal form, he turned back into a human lying face down in the smelly, choking mud of the field. A hand gripped his hair, painfully wrenching his head out of the mud. The shape of a head moved close to Kazuki's and inspected him intently. Even though the rest of the world seemed blurry to Kazuki, the man's grey, piercing eyes stood out sharply, filled with a mix of hate and achievement.

"Good boy," the rasping voice said, chilling Kazuki's soul, "You really are predictable."

With a laugh, Ryoichi's boot stamped down on the back of Kazuki's head, slamming it into the mud.


	34. Chapter 34 Arms race

Arms race

_Two years ago_

Yuina had taken the news surprising well. The flood of tears Kazuki had expected had never come and he assumed that the news was not unexpected. But Tsuki could tell from her time with Yuina that the woman was heartbroken. She witnessed death on a regular basis and knew that tears only worsen the suffering of those who are left behind. The three of them sat together around Kazuki's bed, not speaking very much. Kazuki was thankful for the mint green pyjamas they had given him, although secretly he would have preferred something a little darker. Eventually, Tsuki cleared her throat.

"So, what have you been up to since I last saw you, Zuki-kun?" she asked.

Kazuki adjusted the bedclothes, conscious that the button-fly on his pyjama bottoms was broken. He thought about the initiation ritual, meeting Kaito, being attacked; trivial things like that. He remembered the night he had killed the man in the woods. He could still taste the blood on his lips.

"Nothing much," Kazuki replied, shrugging.

Tsuki raised an eyebrow. "How'd you get so badly injured?" she inquired.

Kazuki absent mindedly scratched at the faint scar on his arm. "I was ambushed on the way here," he said.

"Really?" she exclaimed, eyes widening, "By who?"

Kazuki shrugged. "I don't know," he admitted, "There were about six of them, dressed in red with katanas."

Yuina suddenly woke from her daze. "What?" she asked, blinking at Kazuki, "Did you catch their names?"

Kazuki frowned, thinking back. "Yes, actually," he said, "I heard two of their names. I think it was Aoi and…" he thought for a moment, "Gorou."

A horrified look appeared on Yuina's face. "Are you sure?" she asked.

Kazuki nodded. "They said that 'the boss' didn't need me alive." He narrowed his eyes at Yuina. "Do you know who they were?"

Yuina bit her lip and nodded sadly. "They work for Ryoichi…"

Tsuki's eyes widened in surprise. Kazuki looked at her in puzzlement.

"Who's Ryoichi?" he asked.

Tsuki glanced at Yuina, who was staring at the floor.

"He killed her children," she explained quietly, "And now he must be after you, although I don't know why. He's insane."

"That's true," said Yuina without looking up, "But he is brilliant. He wants to kill you because you are the closest thing to a blood relative I have left. If you die, I am alone."

Kazuki blinked at her. The three of them sat in silence.

"Anyone know where the cookie dough is?" asked Aya, suddenly bursting into the room.

Everybody looked at her. The black haired girl, noticing Kazuki, stopped.

"Hi, Zuki-kun!" she greeted him.

Kazuki blinked in surprise. "How do you know my-"

"This is Aya," interrupted Tsuki, "She can read minds."

Kazuki nodded slowly. "Fair enough…" He turned back to Aya. "I can turn into animals."

Aya raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, I know."

Kazuki stared at her for a few seconds. "Don't call me Zuki-kun," he told her coldly.

"Tsuki does it all the time," she protested, smiling slyly.

Kazuki didn't say anything. Yuina cleared her throat loudly.

"If I could bring the conversation back to _important _matters," she said, "If Ryoichi's men were following Kazuki, then they probably know he's here."

"I killed all of them," Kazuki pointed out, "Nobody knows I'm here."

Yuina shook her head. "Ryoichi has many more men at his disposal," she said, "There will have been more watching you all the time."

"So does that mean they're coming here?" Tsuki asked anxiously.

"It's very likely," replied Yuina, "We'll need to prepare."

* * *

Kazuki hobbled along the corridor, using a broom as a makeshift crutch.

"Hurry up!" shouted Aya, waiting with the others by the big metal door at the other end.

Kazuki let out a dog-like noise which puzzled the others, only Kazuki knowing how offensive such a word was to canines. The armoury was located in the cellar below the hospital; down a steep flight of stairs that Kazuki was annoyed to find that nobody offered to help him down. The armoury contained the many weapons that the deceased patients left behind. Yuina said they would need them to fight off Ryoichi and his men.

"There's a good variety," said Yuina once Kazuki had caught up, "Take what you think you will be best with."

Pulling a large silver key from the sleeve of her kimono, she unlocked the bulky padlock and the door began to grind open. Walking inside the pitch black vault, Yuina switched on the light and immediately jumped back with a startled cry. Kazuki leaned around her to see what was going on.

"Oh God…" he sighed.

"How're you doing?" said Kaito, sitting cross legged, a long twin-bladed staff across his lap.

"Hi Kaito…" mumbled Kazuki, cringing from the other's stares.

Kaito looked him up and down. "Nice jim-jams," he said.

Kazuki's reply was cut short by Yuina leaping at Kaito with remarkable speed and dexterity for such an old woman. Kaito was caught by surprise and ended up pinned to the floor, a sharp, thin needle poking into the skin of his neck.

"Yuina!" cried Kazuki, attempting to leap to his rescue, but instead hobbling forward like the cripple he was, "It's OK! He's with us!"

After a moment of deliberation, Yuina released Kaito and replaced the needle back in the bun in her hair. Tsuki and Aya just stared at him, obviously not yet over the effect of seeing a –sort of- invisible person.

"How did you get in here?" asked Yuina.

Kaito frowned. "Through the door," he said, pointing at it.

Yuina glared at him. "What are you doing here?"

Kaito's face became very serious. "I'm here to help you fight."

Everybody blinked in surprise.

"You know about Ryoichi?" asked Tsuki.

"No…" replied Kaito, "But I know something bad is on the way, so I want to help."

Kazuki moved in close to him and peered at him. "Are you stalking me?" he asked suspiciously.

Kaito started. "What?! No! I…"

"Wait a minute," Aya interrupted, looking at the two men standing next to each other, "I can't read your minds."

Kaito and Kazuki stared at her in puzzlement.

"Your mind…" Aya said, narrowing her eyes at Kazuki, "It's like there's hundreds of different voices in there, all chattering away and I can't understand any of them."

Kazuki frowned and concentrated on her.

"_How about now?" _he thought at her.

Aya's eyes lit up. _"I got that!" _she told him in her mind, _"Cool! I can talk psychically!"_

The others stood watching them in confusion, due to the fact that they seemed to be staring at each other in silence. Aya turned to Kaito.

"And your mind…" she said, "Is like someone reciting the alphabet over and over." She scratched her chin thoughtfully. "It sounds like Morgan Freeman…"

Kaito nodded. "That would make sense."

Yuina cleared her throat. "Ryoichi could be here at any moment," she pointed out.

Everybody immediately started going for weapons (apart from Kazuki, who was just trying to keep upright). Kaito kept with the twin-bladed staff he had found, confident in the weapon and his 'spontaneous forkination.' Tsuki immediately went for a katana lying at the top of a crate full of foam. Pulling the blade out, she found that there was a chain attached to the hilt, with a long, straight dagger on the other end of it.

"Cool!" she exclaimed, twirling the dagger around on the chain, making everyone duck.

Aya, on the other hand, went for the 'more is more' approach, gathering up as many weapons as she could strap onto her person. The first addition was a massively long katana, which Yuina informed her was called a 'zanbato.' To compliment this she added a pair of spiked knuckle dusters, a truck load of shuriken and a bunch of short, bone spikes which she stuffed into the black leather cuffs on her wrists.

"What're they?" asked Kaito, indicating the unusual items.

With a sly smile, Aya flicked her wrist and a trio of spikes shot across the room, embedding themselves in the brickwork. Everyone regarded Aya with suspicion after that. Tsuki realised that the worst thing to do in the world was to give Aya a weapon.

"Er… what do I get?" asked Kazuki hopefully, leaning on the broom for support.

Yuina laughed. "You're not fighting!" she exclaimed, "You can barely stand!"

Kazuki looked crushed. "But…" he began.

"We'll handle it, Zuki-kun," Tsuki assured him.

He grunted and stared angrily at his feet.

Yuina slid a handful of shuriken into her belt. "Alright," she said, "Everyone upstairs. We need to barricade all the doors and windows and be prepared at any moment."

She turned to Kazuki, who was still sulking, "Kazuki," she said firmly, "You go to bed…"


	35. Chapter 35 Bloodbath

Bloodbath

_Two years ago_

A repetitive hammering echoed through the trees; ominously loud among the quiet chirping of birds and insects. Tsuki apprehensively stroked the katana at her side, peering out through the cracks in the shutters at the misty darkness outside. Hammering the last of the nails into the boards he was barricading the door with, Kaito stepped back and inspected his work.

"There we go," he said proudly, "No-ones getting through _that_."

Yuina shuffled past, a stack of wooden plank cradled in her arms. "Ryoichi is the most powerful ninja I have ever met," she scoffed, "I doubt some shoddy planks are going to cause him any trouble."

Kaito sniffed dejectedly, half-heartedly hammering in some more nails. Aya sat on the reception desk, swaying slightly, making the multitude of weapons strapped to her jingle.

"So who exactly is this guy?" she asked Yuina, who was busy arranging scrolls in a neat line on the floor.

"Ryoichi is an outcast," she replied without looking up from her work, "he was cast out by those who had taken him in and, by the look of it, he has not taken it well."

Everybody pondered this silently for moment.

"Were you the one who cast him out?" asked Tsuki hesitantly.

Yuina nodded. "He was my pupil," she said, stroking a scroll absent mindedly, "I found him alone in the woods, lost and badly injured." She sighed and placed the scroll forcefully down next to the others, slightly crinkling it. "He showed amazing promise; I could see he would one day become a powerful ninja."

Kaito raised an inquisitive eyebrow. "So why did you ditch him?" he asked over his shoulder as he positioned another nail in the boards.

Yuina stared into space for a while, and Tsuki worried she wouldn't answer.

"He wasn't…" Yuina began at last, before stopping to think, "What I was looking for in a pupil…"

The three others exchanged glances.

"He didn't understand boundaries between good and evil," she continued, turning away from her scrolls and facing the young ninjas, "All he cared about was achieving his aims, by any means." She pawed the desk top, her eyes glazing slightly. "I put up with it for a while, but later on Ryoichi developed a… _god complex_..."

Kaito sighed knowingly. "I know what that's like to live with."

Yuina raised an eyebrow. "Maybe," she replied, "but Ryoichi _had_ the power to become practically god-like. And with his amoral perspective on life, he was not a benevolent god."

The four of them stared at each other in silence. An owl hooted somewhere far outside.

"Eventually," Yuina sighed sadly, "Ryoichi became sick of me and the rules I tried to bind him with. He decided to prove his capability. A lot of innocent people died because of it. After that I truly realised the malevolence in Ryoichi and I knew that I could not keep him me any longer." Yuina coughed and Tsuki saw her stifle a sob. "I threw him out, hoping that somehow he would find his own path." She smiled bitterly. "He did. Enraged by what he saw as betrayal, he went away, becoming even stronger and returned to find me." Yuina brushed at a straw lock of hair on her forehead, attempting to mask her wiping away a tear. "He had changed," she said coldly, "he had become pure evil, only wanting to cause suffering. Ryoichi killed my children in front of me, letting the memories fester for years. Only now has he returned to complete his revenge."

Yuina began to shake, her hair covering her reddening face as she dug her nails into the floorboards. An aura of power flooded the room and the walls began to shudder, making the three young ninja brace themselves against the furniture.

"I should have killed him when I first found him in the woods!" spat Yuina, her nails making deep gashes in the wooden floor.

Aya slipped off the desk and laid her hand on Yuina's quivering shoulder.

"Then let's do it now," she said confidently, patting the Zanbato.

Yuina looked up at the girl in surprise.

"Yes," she answered, beaming proudly, "we fight the demon head on and kill him!"

"_Will you really?"_

All four of them froze at the sound of the new voice. The voice resonated with contempt and mocking tones, saturated in a palpable aura of malice. Tsuki sensed an unfamiliar heartbeat behind her, pulsating slowly and efficiently, every beat piercing into her soul like a hammer and chisel. She whirled around, katana already drawn, to see a dark figure standing in the shadowed corner. The others joined her in an instant, brandishing their intimidating looking arsenal of weaponry.

"Ryoichi!" Yuina hissed at the shadowy man.

A humourless spitting laugh shot out of the dark. Tsuki could see the outline of the man in the murky shadow, leaning casually on the wooden panelling of the walls. No further response forthcoming, Yuina leapt at Ryoichi, shuriken drawn, screaming her hate. The others swiftly followed, all four of them descending towards Ryoichi in lethal aerial attacks. A bemused chuckle met Tsuki's ears. Ryoichi raised his index finger. Everything exploded.

* * *

Meanwhile, in the next room, Kazuki lay on top of his hospital bed with his arms folded in frustration. He had discarded the itchy striped pyjamas in favour of his more familiar black leather clothes.

"It's not fair," he sulked, glaring at the ceiling, "they're out there fighting and I've been sent to _bed_!" He banged his head against the pillow irritably. "I'm not a child…"

Suddenly something stirred in the adjacent bed. A man with tatty brown hair rolled over to face Kazuki, a bloodstained bandage covering both of his eyes.

"Then why are you acting like one?" he asked.

Kazuki blinked. "Huh?"

"You've been grounded," said the man, giving him a friendly smile, "Adults don't get grounded."

"I haven't been grounded," protested Kazuki, sitting up, "I'm injured."

The man laughed. "Are you? I'm sorry, I couldn't see, what with having my eyes taken out and such." He held out a hand in Kazuki's general direction. "I'm Makoto," he said as Kazuki shook his clammy, grubby hand.

"Kazuki," replied Kazuki.

Makoto's eyebrow rose slightly. "Oh yeah," he said, "You must be 'Zuki-kun'."

Kazuki glared at the blind man, to little effect. "Don't call me that," he growled.

"But that's what the girls…"

"Yeah, OK!" interrupted Kazuki. He slumped down onto the mattress. "I wish I was out there…" he sighed.

"Nah," Makoto said, "You're better off here."

Kazuki glanced at him. "Really?"

"Yeah," said Makoto, tapping the bloodied bandage on his face, "Look what happened to me."

Kazuki nodded thoughtfully. "I suppose you're right."

"On the other hand," Makoto said abruptly, "What if something happens to your friends?"

"What?" asked Kazuki, staring at Makoto.

Makoto scratched the bed frame with a long fingernail. "If one of the others lost suffered my fate," he said, staring blindly into space, "Could you forgive yourself for not being there?"

Kazuki stared at the man, holding his blind gaze.

"When I was blinded," Makoto continued, sitting upright and hugging his knees, "I had to stay right here in bed as my comrades went out and fought. None of them came back." Makoto sniffed and wiped his nose, almost missing. "I keep wondering whether they might have made it back if I was there."

Kazuki blinked and gazed down at his feet. "If they died, and I wasn't there to stop it," Kazuki whispered, "I don't think I could forgive myself."

Makoto nodded sagely. The two of them sat there in silence for a while, not looking at each other. Suddenly Kazuki leapt out of bed.

"I'm going to help," he told Makoto firmly.

"Good," replied Makoto, grinning. He leant over to one side and stuck his hand into a split in the mattress cover. "Here", he said, pulling out a brown cloth bundle and handing it to Kazuki.

The black-clad ninja unfolded the bundle to reveal two, short, straight-bladed swords. They were held in leather sheathes, one black, one white.

"These belonged to my parents," Makoto explained as Kazuki drew them out and gave them a few testing slashes, "They represent Yin and Yang. Separated, they are just normal swords, but together they become much more powerful." He paused. "Don't tell Yuina-san that I hid them in here."

Kazuki smiled gratefully and nodded, sheathing the swords. He could hear raised voices in the next room and started to make for the door.

"Thanks," he said over his shoulder, reaching for the door.

"No problem," replied Makoto cheerfully, waving in completely the wrong direction, "Good luck."

Kazuki smiled back and turned to open the door. As soon as he slid it open, he froze to the sound of a huge crack.

"Ah…" he sighed as a wall of broken wood and flame came rushing towards his face.

* * *

Time seemed to slow and Tsuki hung in the air, katana raised above her head, chain tinkling quietly around her stretched out body. To her right, a little ahead of her, Kaito floated with her, twin-bladed staff pointing towards the shadows chest. She gazed dumbly at Ryoichi's dark gloved hand, the index finger slowly and ominously rising. Kaito opened his mouth in a furious, silent cry and lunged at him with the staff. The long thin blade screamed towards Ryoichi just as the finger reached its apex. Barely an inch from Ryoichi's torso, the deadly blade was whipped away as the world blurred. Sound returned to Tsuki's ears as the room exploded in on itself, shooting large wooden splinters everywhere. Kaito was hit in the chest by something the thickness of a smallish tree crashing through the wall, flinging him across the room and out through the opposite wall. Jets of flame followed it through the splintered holes, engulfing the rest of them. Tsuki gasped as Aya was smashed into her by the force of the blast, slamming them both into the reception desk. Tsuki caught a charred stench as Aya's hair began to burn before frantic hands batted the fire out. Tsuki coughed and blinked up at the ceiling. A massive thorny vine the size of a tree swayed above her like a waiting cobra, its thorns dripping purple ooze. Without warning, dozens of other thorns erupted from the ceiling and wall in waving lines. The building shuddered violently as the hospital was squeezed down. A sharp, broken ceiling board, drenched in fire, suddenly fell from the ceiling. Aya pulled a shuriken from her belt and threw it at the board, deflecting it into the wall. Immense cracks broke across the ceiling, creating a forest of splintered wood waiting to fall towards them.

"How many shuriken do you have?" Tsuki asked, staring up at the vibrating ceiling.

Aya watched the boards shake precariously. "Not enough…"

With a mighty crack the ceiling broke under the pressure and a volley of razor sharp wood made straight for them. Aya and Tsuki rolled onto their fronts, huddling close to protect each other's faces. The wind was knocked out of Tsuki as a huge weight slammed into her back. A wave of heat washed over them and the lights went out.

* * *

The pressure holding Tsuki down lifted. She turned onto her back, her body aching. An agonising pain shot up through her knee. She looked down and yelped in alarm to see her lower leg bent upwards, her foot resting on her stomach. She grabbed the limb and twisted it back down, biting her lip until it bled. Letting chakra flow through her, she felt the bone realign and seal together. Sighing with relief, she blinked up towards where the ceiling was. Her eyes widened as she saw Yuina standing over her, a bundle of sharp wooden stakes in each arm, shielding Tsuki and Aya (who was lying on the ground, moaning quietly) from the lethal hail of splinters. A drop of red liquid dripped onto Tsuki's face as Yuina sank to her knees, a thin piece of wood thrusting out of the flesh of her shoulder. She let the rest of the wood fall as Tsuki pulled Yuina down and wrenched the splinter out. She started to heal the wound but Yuina batted her away and began to do it herself.

"Save your chakra," she told Tsuki, gritting her teeth.

Feeling unloved, Tsuki knelt down beside Aya, who was still groaning.

"Are you OK?" she asked.

Aya moaned painfully. "No…"

"Good, you're fine," said Tsuki, pulling the red eyed girl to her feet.

Aya coughed out a lungful of dust and blood. "Where's Kaito?" she asked.

The two girls looked around. The hospital had been completely destroyed, only a metre or so high fence of broken planks marking its boundary. A thick mist had descended over the forest, obscuring their sight beyond the perimeter of the ruins. A choked cough echoed around them. They rushed to its source as a bruised and bloodied Kaito shoved a large chunk of wood off him. His coat ran with blood from where the thorns of the vine had struck him. Tsuki laid a hand on his chest as they hauled him up, inhibited by not being able to see his skin as she healed him. Kaito muttered his thanks and picked up his staff. Yuina remained on edge, peering into the mist for a sign of Ryoichi. Tsuki sensed the stuttering heartbeats of survivors in the wreckage of the medical wards, but something else caught her attention.

"There're loads of them coming towards us from all sides!" she called.

Yuina cursed. "Ryoichi's men," she explained, "Blind idiots who follow him like he's a god."

As the four of them formed a circle facing outwards, shapes appeared in the mist. Without warning, a man, dressed in scarlet, darkened by the damp mist leapt into view in front of Aya, swinging a katana. His face was covered by a black balaclava, but his eyes radiated blind fanaticism and bloodlust. Aya leapt out the way nimbly, leaving the katana embedded in the dirt where her feet were. With but a thought, Aya struck out with her telekinesis, hurling the hapless ninja across the open ground. He connected brutally with the jagged wooden barrier, flipping over the top and was lost in the mist, leaving nothing but a bloody smear on the wood. There was no respite however, as a horde of identical men vaulted over the barricade, undaunted by their comrade's defeat. The two sides stood eyeing each other for a moment before a skirmish of flying shuriken began. Tsuki agilely dodged the rain of blades that came at her from all sides and rolled out of the firing line. She rolled straight through the legs of one surprised ninja before lashing out behind her with the dagger. The knife slashed across the back of his legs, hamstringing him and causing him to collapse with a scream of agony before writhing on the floor helplessly. Instantly she sensed danger and raised her katana in defence as a heavy axe hurtled towards her head. The powerful blow knocked her back and deadened her arm. As she stumbled, a shuriken whizzed towards her. Tsuki managed to catch the shuriken, but lost her balance as a result and toppled backwards. She looked up to see the large enemy raising his axe for a death blow. Instinctively she kicked out sharply, her foot thudding into the man's crotch. He let out an anguished groan and Tsuki barely avoided the axe as it fell from his grip. With one movement she caught it in mid air and swung it at his torso. With a sickening thud the weapon penetrated deep into his chest, hacking through the ribs and bursting a lung open. Blood sprayed Tsuki's previously immaculate black corset and she backed off, leaving the axe wobbling in the man's chest. She watched in shock as he sank to his knees, eyes full of pain and confusion. He may have been a fanatic, but it was clear to Tsuki that this man feared death. Tsuki swallowed, sweat glistening on her brow as the first person she had ever killed keeled over and laid still. Before this could sink in, the end of a staff glanced Tsuki's shoulder, making her stagger and roll to safety. She turned to face her attacker, a new look of predatory menace in her eyes.

* * *

Aya leapt over the hapless ninja's head as he swung clumsily with his katana, giggling mockingly. Enraged, the man turned and lunged at her as she landed. Quick as a flash, the blow was blocked by a shuriken that seemed to magically appear in Aya's hand. His right arm locked in place; the man pulled out a long dagger from his belt and stabbed it towards Aya. She grabbed hold of the man's wrist, both of their arms now immobilised. The man sneered under his balaclava.

"Now what're you going to do?" he asked contemptuously.

Aya flashed a coy smile and flicked her wrist sharply. The man flinched as a thin needle shot from the girl's cuff into his forearm.

"Is that the best you've got?" he laughed mockingly, "It's barely a…"

He trailed off, the left side of his face suddenly becoming paralyzed. He tried to get a muffled exclamation out, but Aya had already released him and slashed her sharp blue nails across his jugular. As he fell to the floor in a fountain of gore, Aya was already on her next target. Running full pelt towards an unsuspecting enemy facing towards Yuina, who taking on four of them at once, she leapt into the air. The warning cries of his companions came too late as Aya hit him with a flying kick, the sharp heel of her stiletto stabbing deep into the back of his neck. Aya slammed him into the ground and, to the remaining men's horror, twisted her heel and removed it from the body with a macabre squelch. After recovering their composure, two men drew their katanas and stood defiantly before her. Aya laughed.

"You call that a sword?" she said in what she thought was an Australian accent; "_This_ is a sword!"

She drew the Zanbato, which was almost as tall as she was, making the men widen their eyes in surprise that such a slender girl could even lift something like that. With remarkable speed, she swung the blade over her head and brought it down on one of the men, almost splitting him in two down the middle (both halves looked equally shocked). The other man jumped with fright and darted away. Letting her massive bloodied sword rest on the ground, Aya gestured with one hand. One of the men fighting Yuina suddenly rose kicking and screaming into the air. Aya made a –albeit girlish- throwing motion, sending the man flying at the ninja who was running away. He turned his head in time to see the terrified man slam into him, smashing them both against the wooden wall. After that, none of the men were in a hurry to fight her. Allowed a brief respite, she saw Kaito going one-on-one with an enemy wielding a huge hammer. The man aimed a clumsy downward blow which missed and caused the hammer to stick in the ground. Kaito stepped onto to it and slashed the man across the chest with the bladed staff. He immediately spun the weapon and slashed him again with the other end. As the man stumbled back, Kaito stabbed the blade deep into his exposed neck, feeling the body go limp. As he dealt with the man, another ninja leapt at Kaito from behind. Without even a glance behind him, Kaito pulled the staff out of the neck and into the second man's chest. He dangled there, gurgling as Kaito held him suspended in the air with one hand. He flicked the staff, sending the bleeding body hurtling into the mist before disappearing into a crowd of men in a hail of silver forks. Aya glanced to her right to see three men burst into flames as Yuina used one of her scrolls. To her left, Tsuki was making short work of another ninja, who was panicking and trying to escape as Tsuki attempted to get past his defences.

"Oh yeah," said Aya smugly to herself, "We're kicking ass!"

* * *

Tsuki lashed out with her foot, connecting hard with the man's chattering jaw. Blood and teeth splattered everywhere and he was sent flying, landing in a broken heap. Instinctively Tsuki ducked as a shuriken whizzed over her head. She was surprised when the weapon suddenly stopped in mid air and came hurtling back towards her. She leapt out of the way again and landed straight into the arms of a huge enemy ninja. Tsuki squealed as massive tree-like arms tightened in a bear hug, putting huge pressure on her rib bones. Gasping for breath, Tsuki slammed her head back into the man's brow, but it just bounced off with no effect except giving Tsuki a splitting headache. Just as Tsuki thought her ribs would shatter, the man suddenly released her with a cry of pain. He staggered a few paces before collapsing, a silver fork sticking out of the base of his neck. Before Tsuki had time for thanks, she realised that she was surrounded by almost a dozen men, all of whom now turned their attention to her. Dodging a torrent of shuriken and kunai, Tsuki sprinted away in hope of breaking out of the trap. Suddenly a heavy wooden javelin thudded into the ground ahead of her in an almost horizontal angle. Moving too fast to avoid it, Tsuki caught her foot and crashed to the dirt. Wincing, Tsuki tried to rub the stinging dirt from her eyes. Suddenly she felt the heartbeat of someone running at her. Blindly she reached for the katana at her side but a foot kicked hard into her wrist. As she clutched her hand, Tsuki heard her katana go spinning away with a metallic clatter. She panicked and scrambled to her feet, barely able to see and fled away from her attacker. She stumbled as she came across a tall mound of broken wood and furniture. Glancing behind her Tsuki saw a blurry vision of a tall figure walking casually towards her, a long curved sword resting on his shoulder. Desperately she climbed up the mountain of wood, ignoring the many splinters that stuck into her bare palms. All of a sudden she felt a tight grip on her ankle as the man grabbed hold of her. With one pull he dragged her down the slope, sharp edges of the planks gashing her chest. Tsuki flipped over, attempting to slash his face with a piece of sharp wood. Before she could, the man stamped down brutally on her face. Tsuki felt her nose break and hot blood splashed into her eyes. As the world spun around her, the man grabbed hold of her throat and lifted her off her feet with one hand. With the other hand he positioned the curved blade against Tsuki's throbbing jugular. Ignoring the bloody scratches Tsuki was making on his arm with her sharpened fingernails, he drew back the sword, staring triumphantly into Tsuki's defiant purple eyes. She heard Aya call her name over the clash of weaponry and Kaito let out a curse. Tsuki patiently waited for the inevitable killing blow, but the man seemed to be distracted by something near his left leg. Tsuki forced her gaze down to see a scarred and bloodied hand reaching out of the jumble of wooden planks, squeezing the man's bicep with demented force.

"Not just yet," croaked Kazuki, dragging his bruised body out of the hole.

His jacket was torn and bloodstained and a deep gash over his right eye caused blood to cascade over his face like a waterfall. The man blinked in shock as Kazuki gave him a gore dripping malicious grin, clawing is way out of the ground. The boy looked just like a zombie coming back to life. Dropping a startled Tsuki, the man raised his sword for a panicky downward slash. A moment later the man found himself upside down, dangling from the solid hand of a hulking silverback gorilla. Bringing the terrified man close to his face, Kazuki snorted out hot gorilla breath, making the man cough. The gorilla drew back his slab of a fist and punched, snapping the man's neck into pieces with one blow.

* * *

The frantic fighting suddenly reached a lull as dozens of pairs of eyes turned to the tattered boy holding the corpse aloft, its head swinging gently; supported only by the few scraps of skin left. Aya, Kaito and Yuina staggered back into a loose circle, all panting like dogs and sweating heavily. Kazuki gazed across at all the faces staring at him. He looked back at the body he was holding, then turned back to his audience, grinning fiendishly. He let the man drop and transformed into a vicious and demented looking wolf. In front of the horrified crowd, he reached down and ripped out the man's throat with his sharp fangs. Turning so that everyone could see, he opened his jaws wide and gulped the bloodied human meat down, making a point of splashing the blood and excess meat all over himself and his surroundings. He swallowed the last of the tender flesh and surveyed the onlookers with predatory wolf eyes, his muzzle dripping with gore. He smiled inside to see the wide, terrified eyes of everybody present, even those of his allies. Yuina stared at him in disbelief, while Kaito had a slightly disappointed glint in his eye and Aya seemed to be having trouble containing her stomach contents. Hearing movement behind him, Kazuki turned his head round inquisitively. Tsuki was sitting there, smooth silver hair now dishevelled with blood splatter, an unreadable expression on her face. Kazuki frowned, looking for a sign of fear or resentment in her wide purple eyes, but their mysteries remained hidden. Returning to human form, Kazuki offered her a hand. Tsuki blinked at the blood drenched digits in front of her and Kazuki was worried she would refuse. Eventually Tsuki smiled and, giving him an understanding nod, grabbed hold of his hand and allowed him to help her to her feet. Together they surveyed the ranks of quivering men before them.

"Ready?" asked Tsuki, both of them sharing a glance.

Kazuki grinned and transformed into a large white tiger. "Oh yeah," Tsuki heard the tiger growl.

Aya and Kaito glanced at each other, both of them smiling slyly. The red-clad ninjas stared dumbly as three heavily armed teenagers and a roaring tiger leapt at them, intent on slaughtering the lot of them.

* * *

The vein burst. The hawk flew through a jet of blood and clear of the mass of moving bodies. Kazuki alighted on a wooden board and assumed human form. We wiped his sweaty and blood splattered face and watched the unfolding massacre with some amusement as he caught his breath back. Feeling something trickle down his chin, he shot out an eager thin. Kazuki lapped up the blood, finding that he could now distinguish his own from others. Other people's blood tasted better. He gazed up as Tsuki backflipped over her bewildered opponents head, killing him instantly with a precision strike to the base of the neck. Kazuki had noticed that they were all developing their own unique combat style: Kaito and Tsuki both preferred to take out their opponents with precise, neat blows; while he and Aya usually ended up landing huge clumsy blows that often left their enemies in pieces. Kazuki sniffed.

"_My way's more fun…" _he thought, _"And tastier…"_

He frowned, wondering where these strange new thoughts were coming from. Seeing Kazuki standing there, Tsuki ran over to him, leaving the other three to keep the weakening enemy ninjas at bay.

"How many does that make it?" Kazuki asked as the silver haired girl sidled up, wiping blood away from her sparkling purple eyes.

"Four," she answered, smiling as if were all a game.

Kazuki laughed. "Four?" he repeated mockingly, "I can do better than that as a mouse! In fact…"

Kazuki promptly transformed into a tiny dormouse and scurried into the melee. A few seconds later, one of the men ran out screaming and clawing frantically at his back. Tsuki watched with bemusement as the man collapsed and lay twitching for a while before going still. The tiny rodent scurried contentedly out of his collar and turned back into Kazuki at Tsuki's feet.

"That makes seven," he said, nonchalantly picking red stuff out of his teeth.

Tsuki grunted sceptically. "Aya's on nine," she said, smiling as Kazuki bristled and growled quietly at the red eyed girl fighting some distance away.

"She's a psychopath!" Kazuki moaned, "I can't compete with mental illness."

"Look who's talking…" Tsuki replied, darting away before the newly transformed cat could claw her eyes out.

Just as the two of them rejoined the fight, the enemy broke. Kaito swung towards where his opponent was, only to find his blade slashing through thin air as the red ninja vaulted the barrier and sprinted off through the mist. Barely a second later, the last surviving men who now numbered barely ten now, followed him. They each threw a diversionary shuriken before turning and running as fast as they could for the safety of the thick mist. Kazuki darted forward in the guise of a Rottweiler and savagely bit the ankle of one of the retreating men. He cursed and violently kicked Kazuki in the side, separating his sharp fangs from his leg. Quickly recovering, Kazuki leapt high in the air, his slavering jaws descending towards the alarmed face. A split second later, the man was knocked violently to the side by Aya's telekinesis, causing Kazuki to land in a furry heap where he was standing. The smug looking girl stood over the stunned dog.

"That makes ten," she chuckled as Kazuki staggered to his paws.

The dog growled. "Biatch…"

The others decided to hang back and let the rest of the men escape. The ninjas gratefully obliged, leaping the barrier in one and running for their lives.

"What did you do that for?" Kazuki fumed, turning back to human form and rounding on Aya while rubbing his back, "There were plenty of others you could have chosen, why did you have to steal mine?"

Aya shrugged, smiling innocently.

"Shut up," ordered Yuina, who was still on guard.

The five of them stood there, panting as the adrenaline production cooled down, marvelling at the silence and stillness of the evening. After a minute or so, Yuina pricked up her ears.

"Watch out everyone," she warned as long thin shadows began to slither their way through the mist towards them, "We haven't even got started yet.


	36. Chapter 36 Catalyst

Catalyst

Kazuki blinked. In that time the vines were already on them, shooting out of the mist and enveloping them all. Kazuki and Kaito briefly locked their gazes on each other as the tall, invisible man sailed through the air in front of him. All of a sudden, Kazuki's legs were knocked from under him and he crashed to the ground. He coughed out dirt and squinted up to see a lashing, black thorny vine the size of an oak tree towering over him like a coiled snake. He rolled out its path just before it crashed to the ground, sending out shockwaves that stunned and disorientated him. As he lay there, he saw Tsuki leap over a birch sized vine as it lashed at her legs. Another vine aimed at her upper body just as she landed but the silver haired girl just leaned back and limboed under it. Barely a second later two came on at the same time. Tsuki reached out both arms and stopped the vines in their tracks, the impact jarring both limbs. As she struggled to keep the vines at bay, Kaito leapt into the fray, slashing one vine to pieces with his bladed staff. Freed, Tsuki was able to whip out her katana and cut the remaining vine clean in two.

"_Fuck," _thought Kazuki as he heard huge scraping noises behind him, _"I have to move!"_

Not a moment too soon, Kazuki leapt away and the ground shook as the huge vine slammed down where he had been less than a second before. A new vine reared up in front of his as he descended towards the ground. Kazuki bounded off the approaching plant, avoiding the malicious looking thorns and landed on another nearby vine. Wary of the many tentacle-like vines whipping around him, he sprinted full pelt along the thorny surface of the vine, dodging the vicious slashes of the small ropey vines coming at him. He glanced to his right and saw Aya standing directly in front of an immense oncoming vine. As the mighty plant rushed towards her, she calmly reached for the Zanbato. In one clean movement, she wrenched the huge blade from its sheath and sliced the thorny vine in two with a single cut, the two halves sailing over her smug head and crushing a swathe of smaller vines. Before she could finish congratulating herself, Kaito once again came flying out of the blue, this time slamming into Aya and slamming both of them to the ground. Meanwhile, Kazuki became faced with a nigh impenetrable wall of slithering vines ahead of him. Not pausing for an instant, he whipped out his new swords. Charging at the thorny barrier, Kazuki held the blades close together, frowning in puzzlement as they both began to glow, one with a bright white light; the other dull and grey. Resigning himself to a gung-ho attitude, he brought them both together and leapt, raising them over his head as a single weapon. With an almost lion-like roar, he brought the blade down into the solid mass of vines. He was surprising to find himself almost falling through it, his swords having sliced the vines up like butter and leaving only smoking plant debris in his wake. Ahead of him, another clump of vines exploded in a violent fireball and Yuina stepped through the smoke, a glowing scroll floating in front of her outstretched hand. In the distance, he could hear Aya cussing for no particular reason. A lone vine slithered across the ground as if fleeing, green sap flowing from hundreds of slashes across its coarse surface. The mist obscured sky sparkled as a shower of silver forks plummeted from the heaven, impaling the thrashing vine into the earth. Continuing to run along the never-ending vine, he saw Tsuki dashing in the opposite direction, pursued by a throng of vines snapping at her heels. The teenagers gave each other a nod and proceeded to perform a movement that looked like it had been practiced over many years. Sprinting, Tsuki swiftly ducked and slid along the vine, while at the same time Kazuki leapt nimbly over her head, just missing her silvery hair. Tsuki rolled under the bloodthirsty clump of vines that was chasing Kazuki, launching a volley of shuriken that cut a brutal swath through them. At the same time, Kazuki leapt directly into the mass of vines he was facing, his swords whirling around him like a hurricane of sharp steel. He burst from the thorny clump in a shower of plant membrane and sticky green sap. He landed neatly next to a waiting Kaito. The invisible man looked his dripping, sticky form up and down.

"What have you been doing?"

Before Kazuki could answer, Aya dropped down from above. She blinked at the coat of viscous fluid covering Kazuki and smirked.

"Kaito," she scolded with a laugh, "I told you not to get excited!"

Both boys glared at her enough to make her turn away with an uneasy chuckle. Just then the ground at their feet erupted and a thick, short vine thundered through the hole. It was thorny like the others, but was far shorter and more bloated, its surface wobbling like a water balloon. The three of them leapt back out of the way of its clumsy attack as it wriggled like a maggot. In a flash, Kazuki pulled out a shuriken and raised it to throw, but hesitated as her caught the uneasy way Kaito was staring at the vine. Undaunted, Aya drew back her huge sword and took a step towards it. Kazuki and Kaito's eyes both snapped open in realisation, but the blade was already stabbing down towards the vine. Swearing loudly, both men leapt backwards. A second before the tip of the blade penetrated the springy outer skin, Aya glanced back, confused by their sudden shouting. A second later the vine literally exploded, spraying huge amounts of green sticky liquid over a wide area. A burning smell hit Kazuki's nose as the lay with his hands protecting his head some distance away. Breathing heavily through shock, he lifted his head up at the smoking wreckage of the vine. A thin rain of liquid was still descending all around it. A small droplet landed on his cheek and Kazuki yelped as it burnt into his skin. Next to him, Kaito shrugged of the heavy coat shielding his head and stared at something ahead of him. Frowning, Kazuki peered through the green drizzle. Aya was standing there motionless, covered in green with a bewildered look on her face. She did not seem have worked out what had happened. Then she started screaming.

* * *

The dark haired girl fell to her knees, hands clasped around her face as the acid ate into her skin. Wisps of smoke wafted up from her thrashing body as she collapsed shrieking onto the floor, rolling around in yet more of the burning liquid as it pooled on the ground.

"Shit!" cried Kazuki, both he and Kaito leaping to their feet, "Tsuki!"

As the two youths raced towards Aya, Tsuki glanced behind her from some distance away. Seeing her best friend in agony on the ground, she immediately broke away from her battle with the writhing vines and sprinted towards her, a horrified look on her face. Heedless of the undulating sea of thorny vines around them, Kazuki and Kaito kneeled over Aya and wrenched her hands from her face. They recoiled as they realised that her body was covered in hideous chemical burns. As they watched in horror, the flesh around the left side of her mouth disappeared as the acid burned all the way to bone. In shock, Kaito stood up.

"Kaito!" shouted Kazuki in alarm, his eyes fixed on something behind him, "Look out!"

Kaito didn't have time to turn around before a tree sized vine smashed into his chest and catapulted him across the clearing. Kazuki fell backwards in surprise, reaching for his swords. Aya continued to roll around in absolute anguish, oblivious to the danger. Tsuki leapt over a low blow from a vine, vaulting it without the slightest reduction in speed. Kazuki whipped his head round to face her.

"Behind you!" he called, a second before a vine slammed into his back and pinned him to the ground.

Tsuki turned in mid air and lashed out with her katana as a vine reared up behind her. The blade sliced through its skin but got stuck inside the body. For a moment Tsuki dangled from her sword handle. Then two other vines struck her in the back and crushed her against the first one. She gasped in pain as the sharp thorns stabbed into her and snapped several ribs. Meanwhile, Kazuki struggled to free himself from under the vines as the jagged barbs carved up the delicate flesh of his back. Seeing Tsuki in peril, he cried out in alarm.

"Yuina!" he shouted into the swirling melee, "Where the fuck are you?"

In answer, a gigantic bolt of lightning shot through the tangle of vines in front of him, blowing the majority to pieces. In a blink, Yuina was bolting towards the struggling Tsuki. Kazuki felt the pressure loosen as a long thin blade sliced into the vine on top of him. Immediately after, the offending vine was hurled aside by the force of several dozen forks shooting into its side. Kazuki coughed up blood again and reached out for Kaito's helping hand.

"You ok?" asked Kaito, glancing at Kazuki's ravaged back.

Worried about vomiting blood on his friend, Kazuki just nodded and quickly ran to the aid of Aya, who was struggling to fend off the vines with only her sharpened stiletto heels. Tsuki let a despairing gasp as the last of the air was squeezed from her lungs. Just in time, Yuina drew out another of her scrolls and the vines strangling her turned to dust. The girl dropped painfully to the floor. By the time Yuina got to her, she was already up and stumbling towards the stricken Aya.

"Tsuki!" exclaimed Yuina, putting out an arm as a barrier, "Stop! Let me heal you!"

Tsuki spluttered a short response through the blood and pushed her out of the way, heading unstoppably towards her friend. One vine after the other came at her, but she paid no attention, so focused she was on helping Aya. Kazuki and Kaito exhaled in exasperation and leapt to defend her from the rapidly closing circle of vines around her. Eventually Tsuki limped over to her friend and fell to the ground almost on top of her. Struggling to breath, she laid her hands on Aya's almost unrecognisable face. Tears fell, mingling with the blood and acid covering Aya's face. Her tattered skin started to glow blue and slowly but surely it started to regenerate, growing over the exposed bone and muscle. However, this wasn't fast enough. As Tsuki healed, ignoring all other distractions, a pair of long, viciously barbed vines burst through the ground. Each had a long spike on the end, dripping with strange purple goo. In a flash, both vines were shooting towards the two defenceless teenagers. Yuina leapt for the first, a huge beam of energy knocking it aside and burying it in the ground. The old woman pounced on it, hacking into it with shurikens and kunai. Not able to manipulate the elements like Yuina, Kaito and Kazuki both attacked the other vine together. Kaito peppered it with forks and staff thrusts, but all of it just rebounded off its surprisingly tough surface. Kazuki turned into a swallow, flying over the vine before transforming into a young but still heavy elephant. He landed on the vine, causing it to give under him and crash to the ground. The deadly spike at the end fell just short of Tsuki, who didn't bat and eyelid. Regaining its composure, the vine bucked, sending the elephant hurtling up into the air in an amazing show of strength. As the elephant plummeted towards him, Kaito just stood there dumbly, probably thinking of something profound to say about this unusual situation. Just in time, Kazuki turned into a small frog which hit Kaito's forehead with a faint soggy 'splat'. Before either of them could react, Kaito was smashed aside by the vine, which then made a beeline for Tsuki and Aya. Kazuki the frog was hurled straight up into the air, flailing his tiny limbs. Aya groaned as the last of her skin remoulded to fit her face. Sighing with relief and exhaustion, Tsuki turned away. She froze as she saw the horrific looking spiked vine barrelling down towards her. She tried to lift her arms to defend herself, but she was exhausted. Realising that she was powerless, she just had time to notice a tiny green frog falling from the sky before she closed her eyes. A sickening thwack echoed through the darkness behind her eyelids.

* * *

Tsuki felt blood trickling down her face. She opened her eyes cautiously, not sure whether the pain in her chest was what she thought it was. She blinked, trying to understand the scene above her. Instead of a demonic spike drenched in her own dying blood, she saw Kazuki standing over her, holding the poison dripping spike in place with a pincer of his twin swords. The flood of relief washing over her paused as she saw the pain on his sweaty and bloody face. She nervously turned her gaze to his body and was horrified to see the point of the spike protruding through his back just next to his right armpit. Red and purple liquids poured out of the wound as Kazuki, shuddered and tried to stay upright. A slightly glazed look in his eyes, he glanced back at the two stunned girls. He managed an unenthusiastic smile.

"I have a feeling…" he said slowly, "That this is going to be happening a lot…"

With a roar like an angry cat, Aya extended her arms, red eyes glowing. With a sonic boom bursting across the field, the vine shot out from Kazuki's torso. It hovered in the air for a few seconds, thrashing uselessly. Aya flailed her arms in a clawing motion and the vine was instantly ripped to shreds as if it had been mauled by a rabid animal. A fine mist of pulverised plant matter drifted over them and the clearing went quiet. As Yuina carried Kaito over to them in a daze, Kazuki toppled to the ground. Yuina immediately dropped the protesting Kaito and rushed over to him along with Tsuki. The girl's purple eyes blinked away tears of exhaustion and despair as she pressed her hands to the wound. Yuina was on her in a flash, pulling her away. She flailed her arms in protest, crying out and reaching towards Kazuki, who watched the scene with a blank, glazed expression.

"Stop it!" hissed Yuina angrily, making Tsuki pause and gaze up at the old women with teary eyes, "Think, you stupid girl!"

Aya and Kaito watched in shock as Yuina held the distraught girl by the shoulders. Blue light spread over Tsuki's body and the wounds all over her body healed over. She was silent as her broken ribs cracked painfully back into position. Yuina stroked her cheek in a motherly fashion.

"You need the most attention," she said softly, "You need to take care of yourself if you are to help others."

Tsuki blinked at her but didn't say anything. The two of them looked at each other before breaking into helpless sobbing. The two embraced and caused an emotive, beautiful movie moment. Which Kazuki, bleeding to death and infected with deadly poison as he was, ruined with an impatient cough. Yuina and Tsuki sheepishly separated, allowing Yuina to administer to Kazuki. She hovered a hand above his chest and closed her eyes. Slowly, a thin stream of dark purple liquid drew itself out of his body, cascading to the ground at Yuina's feet. That done, she placed a hand on the wound, which almost instantly healed over perfectly. Without waiting for confirmation, he staggered to his feet. Yuina watched silently as he stumbled a few steps to his left and tumbled drunkenly into Kaito's arms.

"You still have poison in your veins," she explained, smiling slightly as Kazuki gazed around with crossed eyes, "So you'll be disorientated for a while yet."

Nobody said anything for a while. They all sat silently listening to the sound of writhing vines in the distance, all wary of what could come out of the mist at the moment. All the while, Aya was clenching her fists in barely suppressed rage. Eventually, she could contain it no longer.

"Hey!" she screamed into the mist, silencing the surrounding field, "You fucking bastard arsehole!"

"Such tasteful insults," mocked Kaito, earning a glare from Tsuki.

"Where are you, you wanking man-hoe!?" she continued to shout, "Eh? Why aren't you here fighting us? Are you scared? Are you, cock-face?!"

She paused for breath, panting and desperately thinking of more swears to shout at the evil nothing around her.

"Come here! I want to cut your mother fucking head right off!"

(Author's note: This character is based on a real friend of mine. And it's pretty fucking accurate…)

Silence reigned for a second while Aya took in a deep breath.

"GET HERE NOW YOU PUSSY!"

And he did.

* * *

Aya disappeared in an explosion of rock and earth from under her. A vine whipped out of nowhere and took out Kaito and Yuina in one neat swing. A wave of dust and smoke washed over the bewildered Kazuki and Tsuki. They coughed the substance from their lungs and peered into the murk. The mist had vanished, revealing a seemingly endless forest of menacing thorns surrounding the ruined building. And in the centre of the ruins, a pair of redwood sized thorny vines towered up towards the heavens out of an immense crater in the ground. The trunks formed almost an ironic love heart shape and in the centre, perched on the vines, stood a figure. His long, unkempt hair hung over his shoulder in a prickly ponytail. His clothes were midnight black and were torn and tattered. Under his rags he wore a black leather suit of armour, complemented by a set of blackened steel gauntlets and boots. Each was adorned with devilish spikes. Strangest of all was the spikes erupting from his flesh. Looking like smaller versions of the thorns on his thousands of vines, the spikes seemed to burst right out of his skin. Four large ones protruded from his back like the wings of a butterfly, while his right arm was covered in tiny, sharp thorns. Each one was surrounded by a mess of dried blood, but it wasn't certain whether it was his or from the many hundreds of people he had brutally murdered over the years. Despite all of this, it was his face that held the teenager's attention. Or rather, his lack of it. Covering his mysterious visage was a blood splattered mask originating from the hidden mist village. The formerly neat patterns on it had been weathered into raggedy lines that looked like scars on his battered face. And through the shadowed eye slits, the faintest glimmer of his staring, hate filled eyes could be seen. Kazuki and Tsuki stared at the eyes in shock, both shivering involuntarily. They recognised those terrible eyes glaring at them in contempt. They had met this twisted soul before and on that occasion; he had torn their world apart.


	37. Chapter 37 Tracking

Tracking

_Present day_

Tsuki's silver hair flapped in the wind. Silence reigned around the three teenagers, yet inside their minds they were shouting with all their might. Eventually the pressure became too much and their cries became audible.

"Kazuki!" screamed Tsuki, her voice echoing across the fields.

She watched in despair as the distant speck of the eagle began to fall from the sky, straight into the waiting arms of a band of vicious men in the long grass below. In a flash Tsuki was sprinting off in that direction, heedless of the protesting calls of her comrades who were struggling to keep up with her. Reluctantly, she reduced her speed slowly as she skimmed over the muddy surface of a bog, allowing Kaito and Aya to run up alongside her. Aya closed her bright red eyes momentarily, opening the psychic channel wide open to the others. Instantly all three could hear Kazuki's panicked thoughts as if he was screaming them into their ear

"_Stay away!" _his mind blared out at them, more cohesive this time, _"It's a…"_

The voice was obscured by a violent mental shriek which stabbed into their minds like a rusty axe, then it petered out into nothingness.

"_Kazuki?" _inquired Aya tentatively.

After a moment of silence the three of them slowed to a stop by a patch of elderberry bushes, all drowning in a rising tide of dread. Aya repeated her question several more times, each attempt becoming even more desperate and worried. When only silence greeted her, she looked at the other two with a concerned look on her face.

"He's gone," she whispered after a deliberating pause.

They looked at each other for a while, nobody willing to break the awful silence. Kaito looked down at where his feet would have been. Aya ran her tongue over her teeth anxiously. Tsuki stared out into space with glazed purple eyes. All of a sudden Tsuki screwed her eyes shut in speechless anger. Without a word, she turned and shot towards the long grass. Not stopping to deliberate, Kaito and Aya were at her side like lightning, speeding off in what could have been a rescue mission, or a revenge mission.


	38. Chapter 38 Repressed Memories

_Twelve years ago_

The half-moon hung in the evening sky, like a watchful eye gazing down at the orange glowing sun setting over the towering pine forest. A young boy, no older than six years sat at the edge of pristinely still pool. Crickets chirped in the distance as the boy's feathery blond hair fluttered in the chill breeze. Gazing down happily into the pond, he watched as the red and gold coloured coy fish circled his feet which were dangling in the water. A small wooden cottage, welcoming golden light creeping through the shutters and a warm smell of home cooking emanating from its single, slightly ajar door, sat some way behind the boy. The evening was as still as any other in the peaceful and remote location, with only the sounds of the gentle wind and the familiar noises of the woodland creatures creating a comforting background melody. In the distance, the boy heard a wolf howl and his heart beat faster. Not because he was afraid, but for another reason that he neither understood nor questioned. The howls of the forest wolves had always stirred something deep inside him and, if he could do more than utter a pathetic mewl, would gladly howl with them.

As he sat in a dream like trance, the sun slipped beneath the tree line. Instantly, the forest went silent as a grave, the coy fish that had previously been swimming happily on the surface suddenly darting down into the black depths of the water as if fleeing from something. Despite himself, the child shuddered. The silence scared him, as did the sudden feeling of being absolutely alone. He scrambled to his feet, deciding it was time to head home. Snatching up a pair of discarded sandals by his side, he scampered quickly back towards the safety of the cottage, where he knew his mother and father would be there to comfort him. Running up onto the front porch, he froze, his tiny hand poised against the open door. Staring into the strange darkness within, he felt a disturbing coldness and emptiness. Innocent blue eyes open wide with fear, he shuffled slowly into the murky room.

A low table sat in the middle of the chamber, laden with untouched bowls of rice. As the boy walked apprehensively by, he wondered why his mother hadn't called him in for supper. An aura of malice hung over the entire house and the boy felt none of the familiar safety and comfort he usually found in this place. He padded quietly through a sliding door into a small kitchen, the simple worktop bare and all the cupboards closed and untouched. The only thing out of place was the kitchen knife holder, which had one slot unoccupied. The boy sniffed as he passed through into the hallway, an unfamiliar salty tang suddenly catching his nose. He stepped onto the rough brown rug laid along the length of the passageway, jumping slightly as his foot touched something cold and metallic. The boy looked down sharply, raising his foot off the object. It was the kitchen knife missing from the kitchen, for some reason abandoned on the rug at his feet. The child nervously skirted round the knife, never really comfortable around sharp objects. The door to his parent's bedroom caught his eye. The wooden door hung at an odd angle, as if it wasn't attached properly at the hinges, with four deep scratches across the wood. Unbearably slowly, the boy crept over to the door, easing it open with as little force as possible. There was a snap and then a crash as the door, attached only at one hinge, came free and hit the wooden floorboards, making the boy jump back in fright. Too much for him, the child darted into the room, tears in his eyes, searching for his mother. He found her.

The air seemed to glow a vivid red, reflected from the crimson walls, which the boy last remembered as being a deep blue colour. The furniture was torn to shreds, pieces of wardrobe and bed scattered across the room like debris from an explosion. But the boy saw none of this. An ominous, methodical dripping sound caused his trembling shoulders to flinch as if each one was a dagger in his back. For what seemed like forever, the child stared into his mother's dead eyes as she hung limply from the gore-stained wall, suspended by two long, silver blades thrust through both shoulders. Her long blond hair dangled raggedly over her face, as if trying to spare the child from the horrible sight of that pain-wracked face. The boy twitched uncontrollably, as he stumbled awkwardly backwards, neither crying nor taking his eyes of the corpse pinned to the wall. It seemed the magnitude of it hadn't quite sunk in. All of a sudden, there was a cry from out the side door. Recognising the voice as his father's, the child ran as fast as he could out of the horrific room into the hallway, not daring to breathe until he had reached the passageway. The double doors leading out of the side of the house had been torn off violently, as if a storm had hit. The boy saw the familiar moonlight glint of his father's old katana, which law in the doorway, its blade shattered like glass into a pile of useless shards. Rain now beat down from the blackened sky, the spray pouring through the huge opening into the hallway.

Stepping carefully over the sharp pieces of sword, the child peered around a cracked wooden doorframe into the small garden sitting alongside the house. The circular stone well was crumbling, a huge chunk of the rock seemingly blasted across the lawn, one such fragment having crushed the modest wooden swing the boy had spent many hours playing on with his father. Suddenly, his eyes widened as the boy saw his father, a slim man dressed in a humble grey shirt and trousers, dangling by the throat from the hand of another man whose back was turned to the boy. He was able to see the black, neatly tidied leather armour covering the stranger's body, an equally jet black ponytail hanging low down his armoured back. A curved, serrated blade was held in his left hand. The boy's father gagged as the black gauntlet at his throat clenched tighter. The man's greying hair and beard were flecked with red and his wizened blue eyes glared at his attacker with a defiant hatred. The stranger remained eerily still, letting his victim dangle helplessly from his fingers. A single, mocking chuckle was let out, but was soon carried away on the wind. With a motion like a striking cobra, the black clad man brought the sword up into the father's stomach.

Stifling a shriek, the boy turned away, sliding helplessly down the scarred wooden wall, tears now running freely over the hands clutched over his sobbing face. From outside, there was a sound of slow, calculating slicing, followed by the sound of something heavy falling onto grass. Shaking with terror and disbelief, the boy peered back around the corner. The stranger was standing exactly where he was, his blade again at his side, only now it dripped blood onto the grass with every calm rise and fall of the man's shoulders. Without warning, the boy felt an icy stab in his chest. The killer's head tilted slightly. The child knew he had been detected, but could do nothing but crouch there and watch. The world around blurred, so that only the black clothed man remained in focus, as if he was the only real thing in the world. Each second choked the boy like a noose as slowly and with a palpable sadism, the man turned around. As the boy stared into the emotionless, pitch black eyeholes of that white mask, the red essence of his father running from them like bloody tears, the boy knew he was looking into the depths of Hell itself.

In the distance, the wolves started howling again.


End file.
